Separate
by Charlotte Eraviel
Summary: Months after sealing Miku's Spirit Powers, Itsuka Shidou haven't encountered a single spirit, and finally returned to his everyday normal life. But is it going to be what it was? Life is no longer a bed of roses even after his previous struggles, and something that cannot be explained by mere words might fall before him... or it fell before him already...
1. Guest!

**Yooo, Eraviel here again! New story! Set after the events of Volume 7, but not immediately AFTER the events. No spoilers I think on volume 8 onwards, so everyone's free to read, unless you didn't watch Date A Live II :3 Time is set in a summer season, since I like summer :3**

**You might know who's gonna be our guest this time! This story contain my hypothetical ideas, so I'm expecting much questions like "how" and "why" in this one. **

**No fights/battles in this story, pure slice of life only.**

**As usual, this is an AU. I like writing AUs. I love AUs. You'll see the reason why later on. But I'm not gonna tell it directly :)**

**On to the story now! No more chatters! :)**

School. Abbreviated by some people as Seven Crappy Hours Of Our Life. They also say that school is hell, because of assignments, exams and projects, which is true, but not in an exaggerated description.

To a certain person, being able to stay in school from morning to afternoon means that there's peace, no more trouble and all's well. That certain person is Itsuka Shidou, the one who possesses an unnatural ability to seal the power of the beings called Spirits, who bring destruction whenever they directly manifest themselves on earth from another dimension or realm. And not to mention, all spirits known were females, and he sealed the power of a total of six spirits at that time. And by sealing them, he needs to go on a date with them, make them open up with him, and finally kiss them when their affection for him are on the maximum to seal the deal.

And yes, he has gone through so many troubles and hardships, just to make a single spirit open up to him. Sounds evil, but there's nothing like that when we're talking about Itsuka Shidou, who somewhat doesn't know hatred, even though his friend tried to kill his sister before.

Shidou could be seen walking down the streets with a certain dark-night haired girl wearing a red bow tying a part of her hair in a ponytail style, and wearing the girl's uniform of Raizen High School, the school where they're currently attending. That girl is named Yatogami Tohka, the first spirit that Shidou saved, and the girl that made Shidou decide to save all the spirits that will appear on earth.

"It's nice to be back at school." Shidou said as he sighed in relief. Going back to his usual lifestyle after a hellish journey feels really great. Everyone knows this feeling.

"Umu! It's like everything's just a dream!" Tohka said as she smiled at him.

"A dream, huh." Shidou said as he looked up to the skies. "Well, it could be described like that."

"Right?" Tohka said. "Oh, right… I wonder where's Kaguya and Yuzuru? They didn't walk with us today." Tohka wondered.

"Ah, they passed by earlier, and told me that they have club practice, so they left early." Shidou answered her question. "I was surprised that they joined a club, but they didn't tell me when I asked them." He continued.

"Oooohh, a club!" Tohka brightened when she heard the word 'club'. Somehow, it piqued her interest and curiosity. "So Shidou, what's a club?" She asked with an innocent look with smile.

'As I expected…' Shidou thought and sighed internally.

**~o~O~o~**

Shidou and Tohka arrived at school around 10 minutes before eight.

And yes, Shidou's in class now. Around 8am in the morning, waiting for their homeroom teacher to arrive and start his 'peaceful' life. A lot of things happened before and after sealing Miku's powers, and now she's added to his harem. Plus, there's Tohka's inversed form, which was really breath-taking. Yep, and now, there're six girls who had their eyes set on to him and would do anything to get him. Uh, excluding someone, since she's not going as far as doing anything or everything.

"…Shidou?" A girl called Shidou as he was daydreaming.

Shidou looked to the person who just called him, and saw a girl with a long night dark hair with a ribbon tied on her hair, with crystal eyes and had this irritated expression on her face.

"What's up, Tohka?" Shidou asked the girl whose name was Tohka.

"Mou, you're spacing out! I've been calling your attention ten times already!" Tohka said as she pouted at him.

Woah, just how deep was his daydreaming?

"…Ah, sorry, I was just thinking about something." Shidou said as he patted Tohka's head, which made her purr. "By the way, I bet you have something to say?"

"Umu! I'm thinking that if we can go to the beach when our summer vacation starts." Tohka said and then showed Shidou a flyer. "We could go here!" Tohka said as she pointed something on the flyer.

Shidou checked the thing that Tohka held. It was a beach, with an inn where you can stay overnight or two, plus there's an event every afternoon, starting from the day of the start of their summer vacation.

Their summer vacation starts the day after tomorrow since it's already Thursday. Of course, there's no class on Saturday and Sunday so it's counted to the days of the vacation.

"Hmm, I guess we could go. I'll ask Kotori then." Shidou said as he smiled. Going to that place is not bad and it's a good experience too. Not like he's never been to one though.

"Yay!" Tohka jumped out in happiness and then died down immediately after a certain girl went towards them.

"Then, count me in too, Shidou." The girl said straightforward without any excuses.

"O-Origami…?" Shidou called the name of the girl who just appeared in front of them.

"Tobiichi Origami! What are you doing?! You're not needed here and there!" Tohka said as she stepped in front of her.

"Yatogami Tohka…" Origami said with a vague expression. "I didn't notice you here, since your presence is not noticeable, or I'd say it's not worth noticing."

"Wha-?" Tohka retaliated as she heard her statement. "What did you say?!"

There were sparks going between the eyes of the two girls who seem to be having an imaginary fight as they stared to each other. Good thing, the Yamai sisters, Kaguya and Yuzuru, the third and the first pair of spirits that Shidou saved at their school trip, wasn't at the scene, or else there'll be a war early in the morning.

"Hey, you two, cut it out already. You're making a scene early in the morning." Shidou said as he separated the two. "Decide by rock-paper-scissors on who's going to come and not."

A good, but cruel idea. There's no other means other than this one to get rid one of them, not in a literal way.

After saying that, the two girls prepared their hands for the ultimate battle. Yes, ultimate.

"Jan… Ken-"

They lifted their hands and immediately dropped it and showed their hands.

"Pon!"

Surprisingly, Tohka got a scissors hand and Origami got a paper hand.

"Hahahaha! Serves you right!" Tohka said as she bragged her victory against her archenemy.

Surprisingly, her opponent didn't do any tricks.

Origami just clicked her tongue and went back to her seat. Shidou seemed to be relieved that the fighting has stopped but he got a bad feeling about this.

"Why do I think that there's something sinister that will fall before me…?" Shidou mumbled as he straightened up on his seat and sighed.

"Shidou…?" Tohka said with a sad look on her face. "… Am I causing trouble for you…?" She asked.

"…!" Shidou was surprised from her question. He didn't see that coming. "No, no, no! I'm just thinking about something. You needn't to worry about it." Shidou said as he reassured the spirit girl in front of her.

"Is that so…? That's a relief." Tohka said as she sighed in relief. "I thought that I'm causing you trouble, that you might hate me for it."

"Come on, stop thinking about those things, you know that I can never hate you." Shidou said as she patted her head.

"Mmmm!" Tohka purred on his patting.

During that lovey-dovey moment, there's someone who's glaring at him. It was Tobiichi Origami. But he didn't notice her glare, or maybe didn't pay heed on it? Who knows.

Few moments later, their homeroom teacher, Okamine Tamae, entered the room with her usual greeting.

"Alright, everyone! Get back to your seats! Homeroom is starting!" Tamae, or I'd say, Tama-chan, since it's more comfortable calling her that, said to all students inside the classroom.

Everyone inside the classroom abided to her bidding, no more questions and reactions included.

"Ehem… Before I start, I have an announcement to make for today, though this will be quite surprising at this point of time." Tama-chan announced to the whole class, which made them show question marks above their heads and showed a confused aura.

"We have a new student joining our class starting today!" She announced again.

"Eh…?"

"New transfer student?"

"At the time before the summer vacation?"

"I wonder who that is."

"Is it a boy, or a girl?"

The students inside the classroom gave different reactions and opinions from Tama-chan's announcement. Well, having a transfer student before summer vacation is really weird.

"Hai, Hai, everyone! Settle down!" Tama-chan said as she tried to calm the students down, which she successfully did. She then walked to the door, knocked on it and said, "Alright, you can come in now."

The door opened and a girl with long, blue hair, with a flower hair pin attached to her hair beside her left eye, wearing a beige school uniform that looks like jacket, paired with a short blue skirt; walked inside the room. She got a pair of brown eyes, and is a little taller from the other girls.

Everybody was surprised. But there were people who were more surprised than the others.

"Hello everyone, I'm Itsuka Shiori, it's nice to meet you, again!" The girl who introduced herself as Shiori said, while looking to a certain someone as she emphasized the word 'again'. She then waved at everyone which made their heart beat a little faster than normal, probably due to her appeal.

"Wha-"

"Hooooohhhh?!"

"A beauty!"

"No! A Goddess!"

"….!"

Different reactions were shown from the people inside the classroom as the girl named Itsuka Shiori made her introduction. But then again, there were people who had different reactions apart from the others.

And then, there's a single person who didn't quite process what was happening at that time immediately.

**Alright! Chappy 1 is done! Shorter than anything since it's just a prologue. I want to know what you think about this one :)**

**I will explain the answer as to how our god-tier 'trap' appeared here as a girl, yes, legit girl on the next chapter. It might be a little unacceptable but I hope that you will like it! It's not really serious, just someone at work here :D**

**I wrote this one long ago, but I didn't upload it immediately XD And didn't touch it until it's time to upload it X3**

**Yep, I'm still working on my other fic, Opposite of Every Thing. This idea just popped in my head because of my personal issues. So I don't know if this is any good. Random ideas make random impressions :3**

**Until next time! Ja Ne!**


	2. Reveal?

**Hi! Eraviel here again! Chappy 2 is here! LOL! HOW LONG HAS IT BEEN?! D:**

**To Seeker 213: My bad, XD Let's just think that it's a 'holiday' hehe.**

**To Requiem81: Uh, does it really matter? How come you did even had that impression? XD But then again, I wrote at the bottom of the first chappie: Random ideas make random impressions xD**

**Took me so long before I could finalize my theories here, so I'm sorry if the update took forever xD**

**As for my promise that I'd explain how our Shiori-chan appeared, I've decided not to lay everything here. I'd do it sequentially.**

**On to the story now, no more chattering! I bet you probably know what I'm going to say, so I'm not gonna repeat it again :3**

* * *

"Huh…?" Origami said as her mouth opened in surprise. She then looked to Shidou whose thoughts seem to be wandering somewhere.

"S-S-Shiori…?" Tohka mumbled as she saw the figure in front of the class. She's one of the people who can't believe this happening. Well, it's pretty obvious for her since she's simultaneously looking from Shidou to Shiori in a repetitive manner.

Shidou just stared to the girl in front as his head was leaning on his hand. Possibly processing what was happening. And by the time it hit him, his head slipped down from his hand and hit the table.

"Owww…!" He groaned in pain.

"Ah…!" The transfer student at the front reacted as she saw Shidou got hurt, and immediately went to his aid.

"Are you alright, Shidou?" Shiori asked with a worried look.

"You're… Shiori-chan… right…?" Shidou said as he covered his lower face with his hand as he can't believe what he's seeing right now. Shiori just nodded at him.

Little she didn't know that her actions triggered something.

"Are you two siblings?" A blonde girl, named Yamabuki Ai, asked as she went to Shiori and Shidou, along with her two friends, Hazakura Mai and Fujibakama Mii, and along with a massive crowd behind them.

"You look really alike." Mai said as she inspected both of them, which gave them discomfort.

"That's so lame…" Mii said with a vague expression.

Shidou and Shiori looked at each other and gave an awkward looks.

"Shidou! What is going on here?!" Tohka asked as she went in front of him. She's confused not because of Shiori's actions towards Shidou, but about something else which is beyond human logic and science.

"Tohka…?" Shiori said as she walked to her and patted her head. "You're really Tohka…!" Shiori said as her face brightened.

"Wha-" Tohka blushed from her actions. She didn't expect that move. She became flustered as she got patted since she's feeling the same whenever Shidou does that to her.

"Now, back to her question." Origami butted in. "Are you two siblings…? You really do look alike."

Shidou pondered on that question and decided to come clean and honest.

"Uhh, we're not." Shidou answered.

"Then how're you going to explain your family names?" Origami asked again.

"Uhh, you know, I'm not the only Itsuka in Japan, right…?" Shidou said to Shiori as he looked directly to her, asking for help.

"Huh…? We're cousins." Shiori said straightforward, which made Shidou's mouth open in surprise. "But we're not full cousins. I believe I told you that before…?" Shiori continued as she directed her attention to the trio, Ai, Mai, and Mii.

"Huh…?" Ai said in confusion.

"When…?" Mai asked too in confusion.

"That's so lame…?" Mii had her usual catchphrase.

Their surprised expressions were far lesser than Shidou's, because he remembered him saying those things to them. Yes, Shidou disguised as Shiori, during the Tenou Festival. It's like, his memories were also hers. And another concern of his was, how the trio did forget it.

But what concerned him most was, why and how his disguised self appeared before him? And Shiori's a legitimate girl! What on earth could prove this phenomenon?

"Huh…?" Shiori was dumbfounded when they can't remember her. Then something which was totally critical hit her in the head.

'I see, they got their memories reset… and I'm someone that is… Huh…?' She thought to herself. 'I'm… what…?' She tried to remember something but her attempts were futile.

Those 'memories' were the ones during the Tenou Festival. And it's very clear that 'she' told Ai, Mai and Mii personally about who 'she' really is. Anything beyond that was not clear to her.

She was totally confused.

After a few moments, two figures opened the classroom door and made a very, very loud entrance. Additionally, they're not from this class, and they just got a habit of barging inside during mornings, especially a minute or two after Tama-chan enters the room.

"Err, guys… Calm-"

"What's with the noise early in the morning?!" One of the girls, whose hair was braided up, and has a lean figure, said as she stepped inside the room.

It was Kaguya, Yamai Kaguya.

"Yamai-san…" Tama-chan turned to the source of the voice and saw Kaguya went inside. She forgot that there were two Yamai's in the school. And she totally forgot that she's supposed to start Homeroom.

So much for early class.

"Sensei!" Kaguya called as she heard her call. "There are two Yamai's in the school, so please refer us by our first names or we'll never know who you're calling."

"Y-Yes!"

Somehow, Tama-chan's terrified with this girl.

"Ask. What is going on here, Shidou?" The other girl, whose hair was braided in three portions, and has a 'body of the model' as described by a certain someone, asked as she walked to Shidou who's with someone she's not expecting to be here with him. She pointed the question directly to Shidou.

"Nuuu- SHIDOU?! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" Kaguya burst out as she saw 'her'. Kaguya didn't see Shidou behind Shiori so she didn't know what's really going on.

The transfer student was surprised that the spirits were able to remember her, with the exception of Origami, which she already knew the reason why.

And she knew that Kaguya mistook her for Shidou because she's covering him behind her, and probably didn't see him.

"Uhm, Kaguya, this is Shidou." Shiori said as she stepped aside and revealed Shidou.

"Nu-!" Kaguya froze with what she just witnessed. She maybe at that state for a few minutes or so.

"WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE?!" Kaguya finally snapped. "Why are there two of you?! And why the hell the other one is dressing as a girl?!"

The whole class was left dumbfounded with her intense question.

"Dressing as a girl?"

"What does that mean?"

"Shiori's a guy?"

"Shiori's a trap?!"

Shiori's gone red as she kept on hearing the comments from her classmates. She wanted to defend herself but her embarrassment was not letting her do it.

They totally forgot that they should have homeroom today.

"I AM A GIRL!" Shiori defended herself.

Kaguya narrowed her eyes before speaking, "Well, there's only one way to find out."

The orange-haired girl then walked towards the poor girl who has everyone's attention.

"What are you- Nnh—Ahh!"

Before Shiori knew it, Kaguya was already fondling her breasts.

"OHHHH YEAAAAHHH!" The guys mostly cried as they enjoyed the scene played in front of them.

"It does seem legit…" Kaguya said nonchalantly before releasing the poor girl. "Yes, she's a legit girl."

Shiori fell down on her knees as she tried to catch her breathing. "I-I already t-told you I am…!"

The ruckus inside the classroom continued, but their teacher, Tama-chan, couldn't do a single thing to calm the storm.

"Uhmm, guys…?" She tried to catch everyone's attention, but she failed on doing so as they were too focused on the transfer student.

As they chaos continued, a certain silverish purple-haired woman who seemed to be in her late thirties, went inside the classroom unnoticed by the students.

"…What's going on here?" She asked.

"M-Murasame-sensei, please help me out here!" Tama-chan requested.

Murasame Reine. She's a physics teacher in Raizen High.

"…Cover your ears." Reine whispered to the troubled teacher.

Tama-chan complied with her request and covered her ears using both of her hands. Reine then wore earplugs, took a chalk and scratched it hard on the blackboard, creating an intense, high pitched sound that could almost pierce everyone's eardrums.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH" Everyone cringed in pain as they heard the extreme sound and covered their ears.

"…Cooled of yet, kids?" Reine asked as she removed the earplugs on her ears.

Nobody said a word. Most likely they didn't hear her clearly.

Reine sighed.

"…Itsuka-kun, please come to the faculty room after your homeroom." She said.

Two people raised their hands after hearing Reine's request.

"Which one of us, Murasame-sensei?" Shidou asked in a polite, yet embarrassed manner.

Reine just made an 'Ah' expression afterwards. She forgot that there were two Itsukas in the classroom right now. And for the reason how she knew that? Simple, she's a teacher, assistant homeroom teacher of Shidou, after all.

"…The two of you, I guess." Reine said.

"Why do you sound not so sure?!" He then sighed in defeat.

Reine left without replying a word. Seems like the ruckus died down and Tama-chan finally got her place back and started the homeroom, late homeroom class to be specific.

**~o~O~o~**

After homeroom was finished, Shidou and Shiori excused themselves and went out of the classroom. They walked down the corridors with the faculty room as their destination, in silence.

The atmosphere around the two blue-haired students was getting awkward. Well, pretty much because the two of them were looking sideways in the opposite direction of each other.

"W-What do you think Re-, I mean, Murasame-sensei wants to talk about?" Shidou asked the girl beside him to break the awkward situation.

"I… I have no idea…" Shiori said nervously.

Shidou seemed to have noticed Shiori's nervousness, but he decided not to pry on it as it might be a sensitive topic to talk about. Then again, he might be able to hear it once they arrive in the faculty room.

They arrived at the faculty after a few moments. Shidou knocked at the door twice before opening it.

"Excuse us…" He then slid the door open. The room was silent, as there's only one person inside. It was their assistant homeroom teacher, Murasame Reine, who was present, sitting at the other side of the room.

"…Oh, Shin, Shiori, over here." Reine called in a low voice.

The two students walked towards Reine's desk.

"What'd you call us for, Reine-san?" Shidou asked.

"…It's about Shiori." Reine replied with a vague expression.

"What about me?" Shiori asked in confusion.

Reine didn't seem to be satisfied. "…How did you get in here?"

Shiori didn't seem to get what Reine was asking. She wanted to answer the obvious but she got a feeling that it's not what the older woman wants to hear.

"Reine-san, that's-"

Shiori interrupted Shidou before he could finish what he was about to say. "No, it's all right, Shidou."

"To be honest, I…" Shiori paused for a bit. She seemed to be troubled by whatever she's thinking. "I… don't remember anything. I just found myself in a certain abandoned building three days ago with a note with me."

She then took out something from her pocket, revealing a piece of paper and gave it to Reine. The note said:

_**Go to Raizen High at all costs**_

"…Oh? How come your papers are all fixed?" Reine then took a bunch of papers inside her drawer, which contained all information about the questioned girl.

Shiori swung her head. "I don't know; whoever sent me here might've done a lot of preparations."

"…Seems like it." Reine said as she looked through the papers. Though one thing that was bugging her was, the words, or rather, the instructions from the note is so desperate.

The atmosphere calmed a little for a few minutes until Shidou noticed that something was off with what Shiori just said.

"Wait, Shiori-chan…" Shidou called. The blue-haired girl turned to him with a confused look. "You said that you don't remember anything, right?"

Shiori nodded as a response.

"Then, how are you going to explain what you just said earlier in the classroom?"

Shiori's eyes widened. It just hit her. She now questioned herself how come she knew all of those things. She had this feeling too earlier, but she couldn't remember anything also.

She couldn't think straight. All she could feel inside her head was pain every time she tries to complete the puzzle.

"A-Are you okay, Shiori-chan?" Shidou asked with complete worry. "I-I'm sorry, forget that I asked."

Shiori made a weak smile. "N-No, it's fine."

Reine clapped her hands to get the attention of the two. "…Okay, you can go back to your class now. Thanks for sparing some time for me."

Shidou and Shiori bowed down and left the faculty room.

**~o~O~o~**

The two Itsuka students were walking down the empty corridors. Classes were still going on, that's why the hallway's empty.

"So… Shiori-chan, you really don't remember anything…?" Shidou asked nervously. Of course, he doesn't want to touch that sensitive topic, but he was curious as there's really something off with it.

"Y-Yeah… I'm sorry, Shidou…" Shiori said dejectedly.

Shidou tried to reassure the troubled girl, but somehow, it's not working. "N-No, it's fine. I just find it off because that thing about me being your cousin and telling those three is something I clearly remember doing myself."

Shiori stopped on her tracks as she heard Shidou's explanation.

"What's wrong?"

The blue-haired girl didn't say anything as she was too shocked to say anything. It was painted all over her face, and Shidou knows it too.

"A-Ah, no, it's nothing." She said. It was clear to her that whatever memory she had right now belongs to Shidou; for the reason how did that happen, is something unknown to her, along with Ai, Mai, and Mii forgetting about that certain event.

"I see… sorry about asking again." Shidou apologized.

"No, it's fine." Shiori said as she smiled at him, which made the young man blush.

They headed back to the classroom without further ado. They might miss a lot if they don't hurry up.

'I… I think it's better to keep this to myself for now. He'll realize it later in the future anyway.' Shiori thought.

**~o~O~o~**

Classes had ended without a hitch. Well, for the teachers only, at the very least. But for Shidou's class, it didn't go well. Every vacant time, there's this someone who gets everyone's attention, and she couldn't be more inconvenienced that she was since morning.

But that ended as she, not, 'they' got out of the school.

"Man… that was a long day." Shidou said as he sighed.

"I should be the one saying that, Shidou…" Shiori said.

There's the two of them only. There should be another three, but Shidou talked to them that he'll explain later.

"Right, right, sorry about that." Shidou said with an awkward smile. "So, where do you live?"

"Well, I'm staying in a cheap inn, and I did a part-time job which gives a pay every day, and I paid the rent for three days." Shiori said as she sighed. "But I'm not cut out for that, and I easily get exhausted, so…"

"You can't pay the rent anymore?" Shidou finished.

Shiori nodded in embarrassment.

Shidou sighed. "Alright, how about you stay in my place?"

He said that without thinking through it.

"E-Eh…?! A-A-Are y-you sure…?" Shiori went red instantly as she heard Shidou's offer.

The blue-haired boy seemed to be confused about why the girl with him suddenly became flustered. "What's wrong, you don't want to?"

The young lady's heart raced faster. Seriously, Shidou's a dense idiot.

"I-It's not l-like I d-don't want to… but…" Shiori said as she fidgeted her fingers and looked away from Shidou.

That was the time it hit the dense boy. He instantly turned red after realizing what she just said to the bewildered lady with him.

"N-No, p-please don't m-misunderstand!" Shidou tried to calm the girl, but he himself couldn't calm. "T-There's an apartment b-beside our house, y-you can stay there!"

The perplexed girl finally calmed down after hearing Shidou's explanation. Shidou seemed to have calmed down also.

"I-I see. How about the rent?" She asked.

"I'll negotiate with my sister; she had the authority with that." Shidou replied.

"Negotiate?"

Shidou waved off her question by saying that he'll take care of it.

**~o~O~o~**

After a few minutes of walk, the arrived at the Itsuka residence after taking Shiori's stuff from her former place. She doesn't have many things to bring with her, so the baggage wasn't really that many.

A lot of things did happen in a single day.

Shidou opened the gates and led the young lady with him inside the house. As they entered, they could hear voices from the inside.

"I'm home!" Shidou said. He got no replies, which seems to be unusual for him. Not that he cared about it though.

The two blue-haired students headed to the living room, only to find 5 girls and a puppet, playing cards on the floor.

"Oh, Shidou! Welcome back!" A dark night-haired girl greeted. "Hey, Miku! Stop looking at my cards!"

The girl named Miku, who has a light purple hair, stuck her tongue out as she bailed away from the angered girl and turned her attention to the ones who just arrived.

"Ara, Darling, welcome ba-" She instantly and unconsciously dropped the cards on her hands as she saw Shidou and Shiori standing at the door.

"Miku, what's wrong?" Shidou asked.

Miku was frozen in place. Trying to process whatever she's trying to process in her mind. Probably it's about Shidou again.

"Shi-" She muttered something.

"Shi-?" Everyone said in unison.

"Shi-Shi-Shiori-san?!" Miku suddenly jerked backwards after finally grasping the situation. Took her long enough, though.

"Wh-Wh-Why is Shi-Shi-Shiori-san h-here?!"

"D-D-Darling i-i-is also h-h-here…!"

"AAAAAAAHHHHHHH W-W-What is g-g-going o-on here…?!"

She said 'here' three times.

Miku went nuts. She continued to say incomprehensible stuffs.

"Hey, what the hell is wrong with you?!" One of the orange-haired twins, whose hair was braided up, tried to get the attention of the person who somehow lost her sanity.

"AAAHHHHH I can't take this anymore!" Miku crazily stood up and ran out of the living room, or to be precise, she ran out of the house, leaving the six people.

"Someone go after her?" Shidou said as he stared at the door, which seems to be broken, but hopefully not.

"I… I think it's better to leave her alone." Shiori replied.

Nobody objected with against her. It's definitely a bad idea to chase her down.

"So, Shidou… I guess it's about time that you give an explanation?" The dark night-haired girl said.

Shidou froze.

"I… I think… Reine-san's better off explaining things to you." Shidou said. "Shiori-chan doesn't even know how she got here."

"A-Amnesia…?" The blue-haired little girl with a puppet on her left hand said.

"It could be like that, Yoshino." Shidou said. "So, Tohka, Kaguya, Yuzuru, I'm sorry!"

The three exchanged looks. After a few moments, they smiled at each other.

"Well, not that it would change anything anyway." Kaguya said as she dropped the cards on her hands.

"Agree. It doesn't matter." Yuzuru said.

Tohka just gave a smile at them.

"You girls…" Shidou felt relieved.

It seems like Shidou and Shiori put out a fire, for now. Now there's only one more problem to face. It was none other than her sister.

**~o~O~o~**

Shidou started to cook dinner as he encouraged Shiori to spend some time with Tohka and the others. Miku has yet to come back, and she's not answering any of his calls, so he just let her cool of for a bit. Well, it seems like it was hard for her to swallow everything.

After a few minutes, he finished cooking dinner and served them on the table.

"Dinner's ready!" Shidou called the girls in the living room.

With that call, the living room was emptied instantly as the people in there immediately headed to the table.

"Wow, a feast!" Kaguya said as she sat down.

Shidou removed his apron. "Come on, you're exaggerating it."

"I'm home!"

Shidou heard a voice from the entrance. He recognized the voice. It belonged to nobody other than his sister.

Perfect timing.

"I'll be right back." Shidou said and headed for the entrance. As he arrived there, he was greeted by two people, one is a redhead, twin-tailed girl; and the other one is a woman with silverish-purple hair, who seemed to be in her late thirties, and appears to be sleepy.

"Oh, Shidou. We seem to have a lot of visitors tonight, huh?" The redhead said as she stepped in the house.

"Well, you could say that, Kotori." Shidou said. "Dinner's ready, you're just in time."

Shidou then led the two to the living room. As they stepped in their destination, Kotori stopped on her tracks. She had her eyes glued on a certain someone sitting on the chair at their dining table.

"Kotori?"

"Shidou…" Kotori called. "Seems like we'll have a talk later."

Just as Shidou wanted.

Kotori then walked to that someone who had her attention since she arrived here. "So, you must be Shiori, am I right?"

Shiori instantly turned to see who just spoke to her. And there, she saw Kotori, Shidou's little sister, behind her.

"Y-Yes, that's me." She said nervously.

The redhead just stared at her for a few moments, and then she sighed. "I thought Reine was joking. Seems like it's true."

Shiori was left dumbfounded.

**~o~O~o~**

After dinner, Shidou could be seen washing the dishes, while everyone else was in the living room, watching TV. Shidou didn't mind doing the chores himself, as he's already used to.

"Shidou."

The blue-haired boy momentarily paused his activity and turned around to see who called him. She then saw his sister, Itsuka Kotori, sitting on the tall stool behind him, with her gaze directed to the new girl inside the house.

"Did you know what the cause of it is?" She then turned her attention to her brother.

Shidou resumed washing the dishes. "Not even in the slightest."

"I see." Kotori said. "But, there's only one thing that I'm sure."

"What is it?"

Kotori looked back to Shiori once more. "She's not from this world."

Shidou nearly dropped a plate after hearing Kotori's answer. "What do you mean?!" He seemed to be startled.

"Literally what I said." Kotori said nonchalantly. "Or most likely, she's from another timeline, universe, or whatever similar to that."

Shidou was speechless. He couldn't imagine what Kotori was saying. It would appear that Shiori is like an alien or something, but he discarded that thought. She's a legit human.

"So, what do we do then?" Shidou asked as he finished washing the dishes.

"Find the person who sent her here." Kotori said like it's a matter of fact. "I know it's no easy task, but there's no other way."

"Yeah." Shidou replied. "But, where do we even start looking?"

Kotori froze for a second.

"I… I'll try to do some investigations; for now, just stay with her." Kotori said. "Oh, she can live here."

"Wha-?" Shidou was surprised and startled with Kotori's suggestion. "D-Do you know what y-you're saying?!"

Kotori seemed to be confused for a bit about Shidou's reaction, and then made a smug look as she realized the cause of his perplexing.

"Well, the empty rooms of the apartment are currently unusable, because of facility malfunctioning, so we can't let her stay in there." Kotori said. "Though we've kept Tohka and the other's room functioning as much as we can."

Shidou seemed suspicious with Kotori's explanation. That apartment is owned by Ratatoskr; and how the hell can't they maintain that shelter in good condition?

"You're running out of budget or what?" Shidou asked suspiciously.

Kotori swung her head. "You could say it like that. Well, a certain someone is using too many resources, so we have to cut out on the expenses."

"Ah…"

Shidou got what Kotori was saying. Well, it's pretty easy for him to know the perpetrator.

"Come on, it's no big deal, just think of her as your family member." Kotori said as she patted Shidou's shoulder.

"Whatever…" Shidou sighed in defeat. "Just don't do some pranks here, I don't wanna get caught in a scandalous situation, and I don't want Shiori-chan to get caught either."

Kotori's smirk grew wider. "Oh…? Looking after her already like a-" She was interrupted by Shidou before she could finish her sentence by shrugging her off.

"Okay, Okay, Okay, I'm not listening to you anymore." Shidou said as he left Kotori alone, who was still smirking as she stared at her brother.

* * *

**Ayeeeeee Chapter 2 is done! Sorry about the forever-long update. Hue~**

**I just made an edit, thanks to ProtoTurtle for pointing it out. It's been a long time since I've watched/read Date A Live xD**

**Soo, yeah, I finished my Love Live! Fanfic, and now I can focus on this one, though my updating will still be the same as my other fics, like once every 2-3 weeks or a month at worst. Main reason is, probably everybody knows it already, I am only home during weekends because of my classes. I'm staying at a boarding house and my classes end on the evening, so I have no time to work on it even if I have my own lappy.**

**So there's that! Sorry again for the long wait! The theories and the plotline of this story is finalized, so rest assured, I will finish this fic with everything I've got~**

**Until next time, see ya guys!**


	3. Concerns

**Harro guys! It's me again, Eraviel! Another update from this long-hiatused fic xD**

**Well, I kinda feel like that there are less people visiting Date A Live Archive. I'm wondering why.**

**Anyways, let's get on with the chappie now! I don't have much reply to the reviews aside from giving you my thanks for the support!**

**Enjoy~ Khorosho!**

* * *

6:00AM

A certain blue-haired boy tossed and turned on his futon as he heard his alarm clock ring. It's Friday, the most awaited day of most people who doesn't have classes and work on Saturdays. He reached for his alarm clock to silence it but he inevitably failed as he was still half asleep, tapping it accidentally and dropping it on his head.

"Owww…!" He jolted up and sat up on his bed as he felt pain on his head.

What a nice way to start the morning.

He hit his cheeks and got out of bed. He took a shower and changed to his school uniform. As he entered the living room, he could smell something pleasant. Smells like breakfast.

He then saw a girl with long, blue hair, wearing an apron in the kitchen, cooking breakfast. He couldn't help but smile at the person doing the morning necessity.

"I didn't think you could cook, Shiori-chan." He said as he sat on the tall stool near the kitchen.

The girl named Shiori turned around. "That's rude, Shidou. Girls at my age should know how to cook." She said.

Shidou chuckled.

"Yeah, 'should'." Shidou said, emphasizing the word 'should'.

Shiori somehow got the idea about what Shidou was talking about and just laughed on it as she turned her attention back to their breakfast.

"Tohka and the others will arrive in a few moments; can you set the table up, Shidou?" She asked as she turned the stove off.

"Sure thing."

**~o~O~o~**

It was around 7:30AM when Shidou went out of the house with Tohka and the others. Usually, there were only four of them, but now, they're five as they have another companion.

"Say, what happened to Miku yesterday?" Shidou asked as he remembered something.

"You just remembered her today?!" Kaguya said.

Shidou didn't pay heed to her reaction.

"Well, she went home late last night, and for the reason she couldn't come this morning…" Tohka paused.

Shiori somehow feel unnerved.

"…is because she said that she's not mentally prepared or something, I don't know."

"Ah…" Shidou and Shiori said in unison.

Looks like they think alike and they know what Miku's up to.

"Well, not like we can do anything about it…" Kaguya said as she crossed her arms. "You two should be prepared once she gets back on her feet though."

Chills ran down in the spines of the identical 'cousins'.

"We'll deal with it when the time comes."

**~o~O~o~**

The five high school students arrived at their respective classrooms at exactly eight in the morning. Shidou's homeroom teacher hasn't arrived yet; well, it's the usual routine that his teacher arrives a little late.

"Say, Shidou…"

Shidou turned to the person who just called him, and saw a girl with the same color of his eyes and hair, standing beside him.

"What's up, Shiori-chan?" He asked.

"…You can drop that honorific now, it's somewhat embarrassing…" Shiori said. "A-Anyways, do you have plans for summer vacation?"

Shidou remembered what he and Tohka were talking about yesterday. She even had a fight with Origami with that matter, and fortunately, it was settled in a peaceful way.

"Well, Tohka said she wanted to go to the beach, and most likely, Kaguya and Yuzuru will be tagging along." Shidou said. "You can come too."

"…Sure, I'll tag along." Shiori said in a somehow dejected tone.

Shidou noticed her sad expression. "What's wrong, Shiori?"

The blue-haired girl snapped back and waved her arms. "N-No, it's nothing! I just remembered something…"

"Did you remember some of-?!" In an instant, Shiori covered Shidou's mouth to avoid leaking information and attract attention.

"N-No, I didn't! It was just from the other day, nothing special."

Shidou sighed.

Tohka noticed that Shidou and Shiori was so close to each other, and was about to butt in between them, but their homeroom teacher, Okamine Tamae, entered the room.

"Alright, class, homeroom is starting!"

This will be a long day, probably.

**~o~O~o~**

Lunch break.

One by one, the students in Raizen High went out of their classrooms and headed to wherever they feel like eating to. Some of them went to the cafeteria, while others headed to the rooftop or the backyard. Students with lunch boxes stayed inside their classrooms as it's a pain to find a spot to eat peacefully.

"Shidou, let's go to the cafeteria!" Tohka said as she slammed her hands on Shidou's desk, startling the young man.

"Will you stop doing that?! You're going to give me a heart attack." Shidou said as she sighed in relief. Well, more likely to calm his heart down.

Tohka just stuck her tongue out and made a silly expression. Shidou wondered where Tohka pulls her hyperactive energy from.

"How about you, Shiori?" Shidou then asked the girl sitting next to him.

The girl named Shiori was startled with Shidou's sudden call. "A-Ah, Rei-, I mean, Murasame-sensei called for me, so I gotta run!" She said as she darted out of the room.

The two just stared at the door at which Shiori just made her exit as they wonder what was wrong with her suddenly bolting out.

**~o~O~o~**

"Haaahh…"

A certain blue-haired girl sighed deeply as she walked down on Raizen's hallways. She seemed to be disappointed with something, or rather, with herself.

"Why did I even lie about that…"

She sighed once more. She can't understand herself. Yesterday, she had no problems talking with Shidou, but now, she can't even look at him at the eyes. Maybe that 'memory' somehow made her feel restless.

"…You know, when you sigh that deep, you're letting some of your happiness out of you." A voice suddenly spoke behind her.

The blue-haired girl turned around and saw a woman, who seemed to be in her late 30's, and looked tired as her eye bags were pretty much visible. She wondered if this woman is sleeping at all.

"I don't know about that, Murasame-sensei…" She said and sighed again.

"…Something bothering you?" Reine asked. The blue-haired girl just swung her head in disagreement, but her face says the otherwise, not convincing the teacher in front of her.

"…The face you're making doesn't match your answer." Reine said as she leaned on the wall beside the window. "…I'm all ears, so if you wish to let some weights out, I'll be here."

Shiori sighed once more as she gave up. It seems like she couldn't hide anything from Reine. Well, she's also bad at lying, like a certain someone who's too honest to lie.

"…Is it youth?" Reine asked as she curved a small smile.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Shiori replied.

"…Must be love, then."

"I had a thought that you're implying that with what you've said previously."

"…Then, it's about Shin."

Shiori didn't reply. Looks like Reine hit the nail.

"…Something happened between you and Shin?" Reine asked in concern.

Shiori swung her head. "No, nothing really… it's just, I find it hard to strike a conversation with him…"

"…You didn't have problems talking to him yesterday… what's wrong?" Reine asked.

"I don't know… maybe because…"

Shiori explained to Reine about what she and Shidou talked about yesterday. It was about her memories; about how she and Shidou shared the same memories, exactly the same memories, to be precise.

But there was one gap on her story. It was something that Reine noticed after listening to the young lady's explanation.

It was, who did she cover for when she told Ai, Mai, Mii that Shidou's her cousin. One thing she could only theorize about it was, it was originally Shidou's memory and it was just implanted to her by something, or _someone._

But then, for the trio to forget that Shiori told them about it, cancels her theory. Because what would be the purpose of implanting that memory if the main target were to forget about it?

There were a lot of questions circling inside the physics teacher as she thought about it deeply.

But she didn't ask Shiori about it. She knew that the girl's confused more than she could handle already, and Reine doesn't want to add more of it anymore.

"…From the looks of it, you're feeling like you have no identity of yourself, right?" Reine asked.

Shiori nodded.

"…What you're thinking is wrong. Just because you and Shin has the same memory, and you have no recollection of your memories prior to the other day, doesn't mean you should feel that way."

Shiori was confused.

"…What I'm saying is, you need not to worry about that right now, don't let your youth be wasted with such things…" Reine said as she smiled at the troubled girl. "…It's pointless to think about things that you don't even know…"

"…Plus, Shin could be dense most of the time. So don't worry."

Shiori couldn't help but smile also, awkwardly, that is. She felt a little relieved after talking to Reine for a while. It seems like she just needed a release of weights.

"T-Thanks, Murasame-sensei. I feel a lot better now." Shiori said as she bowed down. "I'm going back to class now." She said and walked away as she waved to the physics teacher.

Well, she really didn't need to worry about that stuff. She'll just be wasting her breath and time.

**~o~O~o~**

3:00PM

School has ended. The students from Raizen High exited their classrooms as the dismissal bell rang throughout the school. Today's the last day of school, as the school will not be accessible tomorrow, which is Saturday. Normally, there should be classes on Saturdays but for some reason, the school decided to end the activities early.

A certain blue-haired girl sighed as she was staring outside the windows. The pleasant scenery playing in front of her was soothing, and she felt like sleeping just by looking at it.

"-iori?" She heard a voice, but she didn't pay heed on it. "Shiori?!"

This time, she heard it and freaked out. "…W-What?!"

"You were spacing out, something wrong?" A blue-haired boy asked her.

"A-Ah, yeah, I probably was daydreaming…" She said as she laughed awkwardly. "So, what's up, Shidou?"

"We're going home now." Shidou said and Tohka, Kaguya, and Yuzuru appeared behind him.

And somehow, it didn't make her happy.

"A-Ah, I have to be somewhere else today, so I can't go with you guys." Shiori said as she waved her hand nervously.

Shidou frowned a bit. "Oh, is that so? That's too bad."

"Sorry." Shiori apologized wholeheartedly.

"No, it's okay. I'll see you back home." Shidou said as he left with the other girls. "Be careful on your way."

"That's my line." Shiori replied.

After Shidou and the others left the classroom, Shiori sighed again.

'Damn it, why can't I just get along with everyone…?'

She kept on telling herself that there's nothing to worry about, but she couldn't see herself being in Shidou's circle. She couldn't understand why she's feeling like that.

Or maybe, she's just insecure.

She just brushed off those thoughts and went out of Raizen High. She better start getting to know the others as she'll be living with them.

After a few minutes of walking, she found herself in a nearby park. It doesn't look like someone's in there, so she decided to hang around here for a bit.

Only to find out that she was wrong.

She saw a girl with a long, light indigo hair, who was sitting on a bench near the swing. Shiori knew this person, as she was the one who ran away from home yesterday the moment this girl saw her together with Shidou.

"Miku…" She called her name.

Yes, it was Miku, Izayoi Miku, the sixth spirit that Shidou saved.

Miku heard Shiori's call and directed her attention to her. The spirit seemed to be surprised when she saw the blue-haired girl walking towards her.

"Sh-Shiori-san?!" Miku was startled. She definitely wasn't prepared for this… or for her. "H-H-How…?!"

"How… you ask…" Shiori said as she scratched her cheek. "I would be able to answer you if you asked me 'why am I here'."

Shiori didn't seem to understand what Miku asked, and it made the spirit upset. "I-I mean… How did this happen…?" Miku asked again.

Shiori really couldn't understand what Miku was talking about. "What is it that is bothering you?" She asked.

"Y-You and D-Darling…!"

Shiori raised an eyebrow. She wondered who this 'darling' was, and made an 'ah' expression as she learned that it was Shidou because of what Miku just called him yesterday.

"What about me and Shidou?"

Miku swung her head repeatedly. "Y-You and d-d-darling… existing together… H-How?!"

"AH, NOT YOU TOO!" Shiori snapped as she sat down on the ground and ridiculously swung her head with her hands. "I've been trying to forget that and you just had to remind me again!"

With that said, Miku finally calmed down a little. "S-Sorry, I just can't believe what I'm seeing right now, and my heart is going crazy."

Shiori tensed up a bit. She felt an imminent danger from this girl, but she couldn't act right away.

Miku offered her hand to Shiori, who accepted it hesitantly. As soon as Shiori grabbed on to Miku's hand, the spirit immediately pulled her up and embraced her tightly.

"M-M-Miku-san…?!" Shiori was startled with the spirit's sudden actions.

Miku didn't reply to her and just kept Shiori in her arms. She was too captivated by the blue-haired girl.

"M-Miku…?" Shiori called once more, but she still didn't get any replies. She tried to break free from the spirit's grasp, but she couldn't get away because of the spirit's strength.

She couldn't do a thing, so she just let Miku do whatever she wanted for now. After a few minutes, Miku broke away from Shiori and sighed in relief.

"Thank you, Shiori-san. I feel much better now." Miku said and smiled at the flabbergasted blue-haired girl.

"Y-You're welcome…"

"I'll see you at dinner, Shiori-san. Be careful on your way home~" The spirit said and walked out of the park, leaving Shiori alone.

'W-What was that all about…?' Shiori wondered.

She had a feeling that it's not going to go well later.

**~o~O~o~**

Inside the Itsuka residence, Shidou was sorting the groceries he just bought earlier. Her companions didn't bother helping him, or rather, Shidou told them not to help him because for some reason, it won't turn out pretty well, so he just told them to stay in the living room.

He was wondering why his so-called cousin, Itsuka Shiori, seemed to be distant. She had no problem getting along with everyone yesterday, but today's a different story. Something must've happened to her, was what Shidou had in mind.

"I'm home!"

He heard a voice coming from the entrance. From the sound of it, the voice belonged to the person who just ran away yesterday with a conflicted mind.

After a few moments, a girl with long, light indigo hair; wearing the uniform of Rindouji All-Girls Private School, appeared in the living room. She immediately spotted Shidou near the kitchen and instantly ran towards him.

"DARLING~!" The girl who just arrived said as she jumped to Shidou, startling the poor boy who was fixing the groceries.

"M-Miku?!" Shidou called her name as he tried to break free from the spirit, but alas, he can't because her grip was too tight. "W-What's gotten in y-you?"

Miku didn't reply anything and just snuggled onto Shidou.

"HEY, YOU SLY CAT! What the hell do you think you're doing?!" Kaguya stood up and approached the Diva, pulling her away from Shidou but failed in doing so. "Let go of Shidou, you mongrel!"

Still, Miku didn't let go.

"Yuzuru, Tohka! Help me out here!" Kaguya called her sister and the dark night-haired spirit for help, in which Yuzuru and Tohka abided and successfully pulling Miku away from Shidou.

"Darling~, Darling~!" Miku called while she got dragged away.

'Is she drunk or something?' Shidou thought as he sighed in relief.

The struggle of Kaguya, Yuzuru and Tohka to keep Miku away from Shidou continued, until someone entered the living room, unintentionally stopping the ruckus.

"What are you guys doing?" The person who just entered asked everyone as she saw Miku being restrained by the three other spirits.

"SHIORI-SAAAAAAN~!" The restrained spirit ridiculously gained strength to break free from the twins and Tohka, leaping onto Shiori like a predator. Well, she's indeed a predator right now.

"Eh?"

The next thing Shiori knew was she's already lying on the ground with her back. She cringed in pain as her back hit the ground; add the person above her who was snuggling on her.

"Shi-ori-san~!"

"M-M-Miku?! What the hell is wrong with you?!" Shiori asked the crazy girl on her. "Get off me!" She tried to break away from her chains, but she couldn't.

"Hey! Help me out here!" Shiori said as she turned to Tohka, Kaguya and Yuzuru, who were helplessly watching her get crunched by the Diva.

The three looked at each other and made an awkward look.

"You guys are so mean!"

**~o~O~o~**

It took almost an hour before Miku calmed down. Shiori found herself leaning on the backrest of the sofa; her energy was completely drained from her, thanks to her indecisive companions who reluctantly helped her get out of that mess.

"Haahh…" Shiori sighed, not in relief, but disappointment.

Well, there was someone lying down on her lap. It was none other than the same crazy girl earlier. At least, she's not hyperactive unlike earlier, so it's better this way.

Shiori looked down to the girl on her lap, and found out that she was fast asleep. She couldn't help but smile at the peaceful look this girl was giving her.

Shiori reached for the girl's hair and caressed it, making the sleeping girl purr on her sleep.

'S-So cute…! What is this c-creature here…?' The blue-haired girl thought as she got flustered by touching the sleeping spirit's hair.

Little that she didn't know that the people around her were staring at her, and just realized it by the time they started chuckling.

"W-What are you guys laughing for?" Shiori asked, even though she knew what the answer would be.

"Just a while ago… you seem to be in a struggle for survival, but now…" Kaguya grinned evilly.

"W-W-Wha-?" Shiori blushed. "O-Of course, it would be rude if I were to disturb her sleep!" She replied, carefully not waking up the sleeping girl on her lap.

"Sure, let's leave it at that, then." Kaguya said as her grin widened with sarcasm.

"Stop making that face!"

**~O~O~o~**

"Haahh…"

Shiori sighed in relief as got inside the bathtub. The water's warm enough to drive her fatigue away.

"Today sure is a long day…" She muttered to herself.

Well, it was indeed a long day, for her, at least. She couldn't complain though, as she got along pretty well with Shidou's girl friends; just like what Reine said earlier, that she didn't need to worry about things that she's not aware of.

Just when she's about to rest her body completely, she heard the bathroom door open, which made her tense. She then looked to the door, and saw a figure from the other side of the glass door that leads to the changing room.

And the person who just entered was the last person she wanted to share a bath with.

Shiori panicked as the person from the other side approached the glass door.

"Shiori-san~?" A playful voice asked the girl who was taking a bath with panic.

The blue-haired girl didn't reply.

"I'm coming in~"

A girl with long, light indigo hair, wearing only a towel, appeared inside the bath. Her voluptuous body overwhelmed the poor girl in the bathtub, making her flustered big time.

"M-M-Miku?!" Shiori called as she covered her face with her palm. Well, specifically, her nose only.

"Yes, Shiori-san~?" Miku had this sinister smile as she replied to the blue-haired girl.

"W-W-What in God's name are you doing here?!"

"Ara, Shiori-san, I'm here to wash your back." Miku replied.

However, Shiori seriously didn't believe what Miku just said, if she were to read between the lines, that is.

"A-Ah, I did that earlier, so I'm f-fine!"

Miku frowned for a moment and then smiled again. "Then, may I request you to wash my back later?" Miku then pulled the towel that was covering her, revealing her well-endowed body to the flustered girl in the bathtub.

Holy mother of God.

Shiori was speechless as she saw a naked Miku in front of her. The spirit girl's curves were turning her on as she kept herself from getting a nosebleed. She then turned around to keep herself from bursting out.

"Ara, Shiori-san? What's wrong?" Miku asked as she slowly walked towards the panicking girl. "We're both girls, so there's no need to be shy~" She whispered on the blue-haired girl's ear.

Shiori was startled and her heart was beating about five times faster than normal. Well, anyone who would be caught in that situation will definitely get excited… unless that person doesn't have a libido.

"T-T-That's not the issue here!" Shiori said. She couldn't contain her excitement anymore.

Miku then grabbed Shiori by the shoulders and leaned on her as she whispered on her ear. "Then what is, Shiori-san~?"

Shiori felt a soft sensation on her back. Her blood rushed up to her face instantly as she realized what those soft things that were giving her heaven were. At the same moment, her arms lost strength, and went limp down under the water.

"Miku…" Shiori called in a low voice.

"Yes, what is it, Shiori-san?" Miku asked in a polite but seductive tone.

Shiori turned back to Miku. The light indigo-haired girl was surprised as she saw Shiori's face. Her eyes were going in circles, and her face was red as a tomato.

"I'm sorry, I can't hold it anymore…"

In an instant, Shiori's nose bled and she fainted on the spot.

"Shiori-san?!"

Imagining it in an exaggerated manner is no problem.

**~o~O~o~**

A certain blue-haired girl slowly opened her eyes as her consciousness went back to her. She could feel her head a little heavy, along with her body. She met the ceiling of her room as she completely regained her vision, and realized that she was lying on her bed.

"…What…?" Was the first word she asked, particularly to nobody.

"How are you feeling?" A voice suddenly spoke.

The girl turned to the source of the voice and saw a boy with the same blue-colored hair as hers.

"…Shidou…" She called.

"You passed out while inside the bath earlier." Shidou said with a smile. "Tohka, Kaguya and Yuzuru carried you here."

"…Ah, I see."

"Do you still feel light-headed?" Shidou asked again.

"…Yeah, and I think I caught a cold…" The girl said as she slowly closed her eyes.

Shidou patted the girl's head. "Okay, just get some rest. Tell me if you need anything." He then turned around and headed to the door, but he stopped as something grabbed her hand.

He turned back around and saw the girl holding his hand. "Shiori? What's wrong?"

"…Are you free tomorrow?" Shiori asked.

"I think I don't have any plans set." Shidou said. "Why do you ask?"

Shiori brightened up after hearing his answer. "…Then, will you accompany me tomorrow?"

"Where'd you want to go?"

Shiori's cheeks went red. "T-To buy some stuff… for the trip to the… beach…" She said in a low voice as she pulled the blanket up to the lower part of her face, but Shidou heard it enough as the room was deafeningly silent.

"No problem with me." Shidou said. "Focus on getting better first though."

Shiori nodded shyly and let go of Shidou's hand.

Tomorrow's gonna be fun, was what Shiori had in mind.

* * *

**Aye, it's done!**

**So far, the story will be a short one only, I think around 8 or 9 chapters if I estimate it right, basing from the ideas I've listed.**

**Anyways, how'd you like the story so far? I hope you guys aren't bored with slice of life xD This is my second time writing a slice of life fic (The first one being my Angel Beats fic), so there's that!**

**Please drop your reviews/comments/suggestions/violent reactions! It would help me improve my writing!**

**Well then, until next time~ See 'ya peeps~**


	4. Chance!

**Hi guys! Long-time no see! Well, I just got out of hell. You know what I'm talking about. Hehe**

**I gotta be honest with you guys, I'm on the verge of dropping this fic. It wasn't really a good idea to put a fanfic up while there's one that still needs work. I just thought I could pull it off, again (Yep, I did it once, and I succeeded, barely). Well, that's one reason, but the main reason is, I just did this on a whim. But I gotta try harder. If you guys have some suggestions with the fic, just tell me! I'll try to incorporate them here.**

**To the Guest Reviewer: Thanks for pointing that out! I fixed it now. I have no proofreader to fix my errors, though I'm trying my best to do it myself, but I knew myself that I could miss the errors, so there's that. **

**So, yeaaaah, I have another Love Live! Fanfic coming up, and I already wrote four chapters of it already. Haven't posted it yet though, and I won't until I finish this one.**

**Sooooooo, let's get on the chappie now, Harasho~**

* * *

6:00AM.

A certain blue-haired girl slowly opened her eyes as she woke up from her sleep. She could hear her alarm clock ringing off like hell early in the morning. She reached for it and shut the noisy object off.

She then touched her forehead, and noticed that there's a towel on it. As far as she could remember, she didn't have anything like this last night.

'Must be Shidou's work…' She thought and smiled.

She took the towel off her forehead and checked her temperature. Seems like it went down back to normal.

She sighed in relief. Looks like her plans won't be cancelled today.

She sat up on her bed and stretched her arms upward to ease the stiffness of her body from sleep before opening the windows. The sunlight went straight inside her room, illuminating the place.

"Today's going to be a good day." Shiori said.

More likely, she hoped for it.

Afterwards, she heard a knock on the door.

"Shiori, are you up?"

She knew that voice pretty well, and responded excitedly. "Yeah, I'm up, Shidou. I'll be out in a few."

"Okay then. Breakfast's ready; just come down when you're done." Shidou said as he walked downstairs.

With that said, Shiori got up from her bed and headed to the bathroom to take a shower.

**~o~O~o~**

After Shiori changed into her school uniform, as she doesn't have that many clothes, and also, she wouldn't need to think of matching outfit; she headed downstairs for breakfast. The food was already prepared on the table, with Shidou in the kitchen cooking the last batch of breakfast.

"You're wearing your school uniform?" Shidou asked as she saw Shiori appear in the dining area.

Shiori made an embarrassed look. "W-Well, I don't have that many clothes, and most of them doesn't match so…"

"I-Is that so?" Shidou regretted asking that. "Anyways, take a seat. Breakfast's ready." He said and put the last cooking he did on the table.

"O-Okay." Shiori said as she sat down on her chair.

Surprisingly, Tohka and the others didn't come for breakfast.

**~o~O~o~**

After breakfast, Shidou and Shiori went on their way to do their objective. And that is to buy Shiori her needs for their trip and for the house. Though the thing is, they haven't decided about their trip's venue. One thing Shidou knew is, Tohka would want to go the beach, but didn't specify where.

"Shidou?" Shiori called.

Shidou jerked up after hearing the call. "Y-Yes?"

Shiori narrowed her eyes. "Why do you look so surprised?"

"E-Eh, do I now?" Shidou said as he made an awkward look. Shiori just had her eyes glued on him, implying that he's not getting away with it. "Yes, I do…" He said and sighed in defeat.

"Something on your mind, Shidou?"

Shidou swung his head. "Nothing, I was just thinking about the beach Tohka said that we're supposed to go… which is still currently unknown."

"Oh, how about asking Kotori-san?" Shiori suggested. She knew about Kotori and her position in Ratatoskr, by the way.

Shidou sighed a little. "Well, I did try, but Reine-san said that she's on Ratatoskr's HQ for a few days, so I can't get in touch with her."

"Oh, I see…"

Silence.

They didn't talk about anything after that conversation, up until they arrived to the shopping mall.

"So, where do you want to go first?" Shidou asked as they stepped inside the mall. The place isn't that really crowded, as it just opened few minutes ago.

Shiori looked around. "Uhm, I wanna go buy some clothes first, but…" She then paused and lowered her head, and looked away from Shidou.

"But?"

Shiori didn't reply. Well, the reason why is, of course, she's short on money. And she can't buy that many clothes with her current inventory.

"If you're worrying about money, don't worry, I got it all covered." Shidou said as he gave a smile to the troubled girl.

"E-E-Eh…? I h-haven't said anything yet!" Shiori could feel her cheeks heating up due to embarrassment.

Shidou chuckled for a bit. "Your reaction gives everything away."

"Shidou, you meanie…" The blue-haired girl pouted.

"Sorry, sorry." Shidou apologized. "Alright, let's go." He then offered his hand to Shiori, which made the girl blush.

Shiori reluctantly accepted Shidou's offer and they started to walk around with their hands linked together.

**~o~O~o~**

After a few hours, Shiori and Shidou could be seen walking around the mall, with a few paper bags on their hands. But it seems like they're not done yet as they entered another clothes shop.

"Shidou, over here!" Shiori said as she called the young man who was with her and went inside a certain shop.

Shidou let out a breath and smiled at the girl who was calling him. It seems like she's enjoying his company today, and Shidou does like it.

As soon as he entered the shop, he could already see Shiori grabbing multiple clothes. It didn't bother him one bit because whatever the amount of clothes that Shiori would take, she'd only pick one of them. It's proven.

Shidou followed Shiori and waited for her to get out of the changing room. She did try multiple clothes already.

"How is it, Shidou?"

Shidou stared at the beauty in front of her. She's wearing a light blue one piece dress, with a ribbon around her neck. The sleeves doesn't really look that hot to wear even if it's somewhat frilly, and the length is down to below her knees.

He didn't realize that he's staring at her for a few moments now. And Shiori knows it. It's a little embarrassing for her but she didn't mind if it's Shidou.

"Shidou?" Shiori called his attention.

"A-Ah, you look good." Shidou said. His cheeks were getting hotter the more he stares at Shiori.

"Hmm? I'll take this then~" Shiori said and changed back to her school uniform.

They went out of the store as they bought the dress. Shidou looked at his wristwatch, and learned that it's past noon already.

"It's past noon already, where do you want to eat?" Shidou asked his companion, Shiori.

"Anywhere is fine, Shidou." Shiori said as she sat down on a nearby bench and took a breath.

"You okay?" Shidou asked as he sat down beside her. She then touched her forehead afterwards. "Your fever didn't seem to come back."

Shiori was startled for a bit from Shidou's actions. Her heart raced and her cheeks went pink. "N-No! I'm fine; I'm just a little tired, that's all." She then chuckled awkwardly.

Shidou didn't seem to be convinced but didn't pry on it anymore. Shiori was definitely having fun, was what Shidou noticed. It's not every day that one person can go all out like this by the way.

"Alright then, let's go." Shidou said as she picked up Shiori's stuff. "Let's grab something to eat."

Shiori nodded and followed Shidou to the food court.

**~o~O~o~**

After eating lunch, they headed back to the department store to see if Shiori missed some stuff, especially the ones for the trip. So far she got her house clothes, casual clothes, a pair of slippers and shoes because all she had was her school shoes, bath towel; almost everything needed in home.

"Looks like I got everything, Shidou." Shiori said.

Shidou smiled and turned around. "Is that so? Let's-" He was interrupted by Shiori who was tugging on his shirt.

"Shidou…" Shiori called.

Shidou turned back to Shiori, who was tugging on his shirt madly. "What's up? You forgot something?"

He saw Shiori staring at something. He then directed his attention to whatever Shiori was staring at, and saw a raffle section not too far away from their place.

"A raffle?"

Shiori nodded. "Look at the prizes, Shidou."

They then walked to the said place. There's a lot of people in line to that place, around ten to fifteen people. Most probably going for the first prize. Shidou took a look at the rewards, and was surprised afterwards.

"A 5-day-4-night trip to Arubi Island! Shidou!" Shiori excitedly said.

Shidou knew that place. It was the place where he met Kaguya and Yuzuru for the first time. He wasn't really eager to go back to that place because there are some not-so-good experience that happened to him, especially that incident with Ellen Mira Mathers.

Just by thinking about it made him grit his teeth a bit.

"Shidou?"

The blue-haired young man was startled as he heard a call. "A-Ah, y-yeah?"

"You were spacing out, is something wrong?" Shiori asked.

Shidou reassured her by giving a smile. "No, nothing. I was just thinking about something that's not really important."

Shiori narrowed her eyes. "You wouldn't think about something if it's not important, Shidou."

He froze.

"W-Well, that's true… But I have a tendency to do so from time to time." He said.

It was a lie though. He just hoped that she'd buy it.

"Alright then." Shiori said. "How about we give this thing a try?"

Shidou was seriously opposed to the idea, but he couldn't discourage this girl with him.

'Might as well enjoy it.' He thought. True, he didn't get to enjoy his previous trip to the island because of those stuff that had happened to him, and maybe this time, he'll get to relax.

"Can we even win it? This raffle thing has 100 prizes in it, and it doesn't seem like a lot has been claimed already." Shidou said. "You have a few-to-a hundred chance of getting it, and we only have one receipt." He then gave their receipt of purchase to Shiori.

Yep, you need a receipt of the stuff you bought in the department store to participate. And what's worse, you can only join once. Yeah, ONCE. If you fail to get the first prize, then it's all over.

"There's nothing to lose anyway, so why not?" Shiori said as she walked towards the stall. Shidou then followed Shiori after a few moments.

Shiori fell in line at the back. The line moves a little bit fast, and she could hear the despair of the challengers in front of her, which made her heart race. Be it excitement or nervousness, she didn't know, and she didn't care a bit either.

Her heartbeat went faster than before when her turn arrived. So far, none of the previous challengers got the first prize, so that means, there's still a chance for her to draw the ultimate reward.

She looked to Shidou, who was standing beside her, only to receive a nod from him. She nodded back and turned to the raffle wheel again. She then held on to the handle, took a deep breath, and slowly turned the raffle.

Shiori closed her eyes. She wasn't really expecting anything, but she thought that it would be nice if she won the first prize. It would save Shidou a lot of trouble on organizing their trip.

She then heard a thud sound, indicating that the result of her draw was revealed. She kept her eyes closed, as the silence veiled around the area as well.

After a few seconds…

***DING DING DING***

"CONGRATULATIONS! You won our raffle's special prize: a 5-day and 4-night trip to Arubi Island!" The operator said as she kept on shaking her bell.

"Woooaaahhhh!"

Shiori then opened her eyes, and saw a gold marble on the tray under the raffle wheel. Her expression became a delighted one as she turned to Shidou, who had a surprised look on his face.

"Shidou! I did it!" She jumped out to Shidou in excitement and hugged him tightly.

Shidou was surprised with Shiori's sudden action, but he just let her be. He can't believe that Shiori actually won the special prize. He then patted her on the head, and congratulated her personally.

"Atta girl!" Shidou said.

Shiori broke away from the hug and gave him a smile, which made Shidou blush slightly.

The operator handed Shiori the reward. It came in a form of a voucher, and the trip allows up to seven people to tag along. She gladly accepted the reward, and thanked the people around her who congratulated her.

After that, they made their way out of the store. Shiori's been leaping happily as soon as they stepped out of the store.

"That was some luck, Shiori." Shidou commented as they made their way out of the mall.

Shiori just laughed at him. "Maybe you call that, beginner's luck?" She said and stuck her tongue out.

"How would that count as beginner's luck when nobody could get professional on that thing?" Shidou asked.

"Beats me~"

They both started to laugh at each other. Until Shiori remembered something.

"Ah!" Shiori reacted. "I forgot something…!"

Shidou stopped on his tracks and asked, "What did you forget?"

Shiori didn't reply a word, and instead, her cheeks went red as she turned to Shidou.

"Something wrong?"

She definitely can't say it. But, if she won't, she'd definitely have problems during the trip, because it's the most important thing that she must have.

"Shiori?"

Shiori snapped back as she heard Shidou's call. "A-A-Ah?! W-What's up…?"

"Your face is red. Are you feeling well?" Shidou asked. He was about to touch her forehead but then Shiori instinctively backed away.

"I-I'm f-fine! D-Don't worry a-about me!" Shiori desperately said. "…Hawawawa…"

Shidou raised an eyebrow. He doesn't have the slightest idea about what Shiori's thinking, or most probably, troubling her right now.

If you're wondering what that thing that she had forgotten, it was her swimsuit. Well, it is definitely the most important thing when you're going to the beach, right?

"Hm?"

She couldn't decide. She wanted Shidou to help her pick her swimsuit, but at the same time, she wanted to surprise him on the trip.

With that thought, her face went redder than earlier. 'W-W-W-Why do I n-n-need to s-surprise him anyway?!'

Just decide already, for heaven's sake.

"I-I'll be right back!" Shiori said as she pushed her stuff to Shidou and made a run, confusing the blue-haired boy in the process.

**~o~O~o~**

In a distance not too far from Shidou and Shiori's position, a certain black-haired girl, wearing the uniform of Raizen High, could be seen staring at him. She was doing that for a while now since they went out of the department store.

"Is that…?"

She then saw the blue-haired girl run away as she gave her stuff to Shidou, which made her chuckle a bit, but immediately died down.

"Ara… This is interesting…" She whispered to herself as she observed the two identical people.

Afterwards, she disappeared to thin air.

**~o~O~o~**

After an hour, Shiori went back to where Shidou was. She's breathing heavier than usual, as she ran as fast as she could from the store where she came from.

"I… I'm sorry for the wait!" Shiori apologized as she tried to catch her breath.

Shidou just sighed in relief. "No problem, I was just surprised with you running away so suddenly."

Shiori made an awkward smile as she held on the paper bag she had with her.

"What did you buy anyway?" Shidou asked as he tried to take Shiori's paper bag.

Shiori backed away for a bit before replying, "N-No! It's a secret!"

"Okay?"

Shiori just hoped that Shidou would like whatever swimsuit she had bought. In her and the saleswoman's eyes, it did look good on her.

But it's going to be a different story for Shidou. Or is it really?

"Alright, let's go home then. We've bought the needed clothes and stuffs for you, right?" Shidou said.

Shiori sighed and nodded. "Yes, let's be on our way now."

They then went out of the mall. As soon as they stepped out, Shiori felt something around her, and immediately turned back.

"What's wrong, you forgot something?" Shidou asked.

She could've sworn that there was someone following her, but she saw nobody.

'Was it my imagination?' She thought to herself.

"Shiori?"

Shiori turned back to Shidou. "No, I'm fine. Let's go."

**~o~O~o~**

"My, my, what a keen observation." A certain black-haired girl dressed in black school uniform of Raizen High, said as she stared at the leaving figure of the two Itsuka's from inside the mall.

"This is getting entertaining… fufu…" She said as she drank her tea. "I want to see how this _game_ unfolds."

"Yet, I might be one of the players here, rather than an observer…"

**~o~O~o~**

4:00PM.

Shidou and Shiori found themselves walking down the street where their house is located. They quite have more stuff with them than what they expected.

"Did you have fun?" Shidou asked.

Shiori was surprised with his sudden question, but decided to play along. "Yes, it was fun. We should do this again sometime."

It took a few seconds before she realized what she just said, and gradually blushed.

"Buying stuff for you again?!"

Her blushes disappeared and then popped a nerve after hearing his reply. "You blockhead."

"What did I do now?" Shidou asked as he made a problematic look.

"Nothing. I just thought about what Reine-san just said to me about you was true." Shiori said.

Shidou had grown suspicious. 'What did Reine-san even tell her?!'

Well, he doubted that she'll get answers from her or Shiori anyway, so he decided not to ask about it. Either way, he had a feeling that he's not going to like it.

After a few minutes of walking, they arrived back at home.

"We're home."

In an instant, a girl with dark-night hair appeared in the hallway, looking so frustrated.

"Shidou! Where have you been?!" She asked as she walked towards them.

Shidou was startled with the girl's sudden appearance. "Tohka! Calm down! I just accompanied Shiori to buy her stuff." Shidou said as he tried to suppress Tohka.

Tohka then glared at Shiori, which gave chills to the blue-haired girl. Afterwards, she looked at whatever they were holding.

Tohka sighed.

"Alright. I believe you."

Shidou and Shiori sighed in relief. "What did you even think we were doing out there anyway?"

Tohka started to fidget her fingers and then looked away from Shidou.

"W-Well, I thought that you two were on a d-date…" She said in a low voice.

Shiori went red after hearing Tohka's answer. Well, it did look like that they went on a date.

And Shidou knew it as well.

"C-Come on, it's not like that…" Shidou said in an awkward tone, which made Tohka suspicious. Shidou knew this and immediately went past through her. "Here, Shiori, I'll help you carry your stuff to your room."

Shiori didn't say anything and followed Shidou upstairs, while Tohka just stared at them.

**~o~O~o~**

7:30PM.

The 7 people inside the Itsuka residence were eating their dinner, while having a chat with each other. The topic? Well, it's a bit complicated. Not in a confusing way but because each person talking to another had a different topic.

Not that they really mind though.

Until Shidou remembered something.

"By the way guys…" Shidou said as he called everyone's attention. "Especially Tohka."

Tohka tilted her head as Shidou mentioned her name. "What's up?"

"You said that you wanted to go to the beach, right?" Shidou said.

Tohka nodded in response.

"Well, Shiori just made it possible for us." Shidou said as he turned to Shiori.

"Eh?! Really?" Tohka couldn't believe what she just heard. "Thank you, Shiori!" She then crossed the other side of the table and grabbed Shiori's hand.

"E-Eh? It was just pure luck…" Shiori's cheeks went red.

Tohka's eyes sparkled. "How did you manage?!"

"W-Well, there was a r-raffle in the department store earlier…" Shiori said. "And I luckily pulled out the first prize."

The rest of the girls were surprised. "Wow, that's amazing." One of the two orange-haired girls, Kaguya, said.

"Salute. You are incredible." The other orange-haired girl, Yuzuru, said.

Shiori's getting embarrassed with the praises she's receiving from the spirits. Not that she hated it though.

"So, where is that place, Shidou?" Tohka asked.

"Well…"

Shidou was having trouble about how to break it up to them. The reason is, of course, they had been there before. And going back there for the second time not too long after the first one is somewhat weird.

But he's got no choice anyway.

Yet, there's still a good part, at least.

"It's in Arubi Island, again." He said. "But we're staying in a different hotel."

Yes, that's the good part. It's not the same hotel that they would be staying.

"Oh, fine by me." Kaguya said. "I didn't get to completely enjoy the trip before anyway."

"Agree. It's an OK for me." Yuzuru said as she gave a thumbs up.

Shidou was surprised with their replies. He expected that they would somewhat complain about it, but they didn't. He was now wondering what he worried about.

'What am I worrying about anyway?' He thought to himself and sighed mentally.

"Alright, great." Shidou said. "It'll be the first time for Yoshino and Miku, so it's good."

Miku was delighted with Shidou's words. "Ara, thank you very much, Darling." She then gave him a flying kiss, in which Tohka instantly caught with her fists.

"Not so fast, speedy."

Miku just pouted at Tohka who was wearing a smug look.

Yoshino just thanked Shidou politely in a low voice. Shidou assured that girl that it was okay, that she didn't need to worry about it.

"It's going to be next Monday, so pack up the things that you needed before that day." Shidou instructed.

Everyone agreed in unison.

Shiori couldn't help but feel the excitement already. It's gonna be a long week for her.

* * *

**Alright! There's chapter 4!**

**Once more, I apologize for the veryyyyyy long update. The reason is as I mentioned above. The supporting reason is, well, I'm not really attached to Date A Live anymore, as I learned that the novel in Baka-Tsuki was abandoned (Though I just found it out recently, but I feel detached to the series long ago).**

**Aye, I have a tendency to use "she" &amp; "her" when I describe Shidou, please point it out so I could fix it immediately. I've proofread this chappie three times already and I doubt that I didn't miss anything, so it would be appreciated!**

**I mostly got everything I needed in the flow of events, and if my mind would cooperate with me always, I could update very quickly.**

**So there's that! How was the chappie? Is it good? XD Please drop your comments and violent reactions in the reviews! It could help me improve my writing. Just no flaming please, I'm not a pyromaniac XD**

**Until next time, see ya~**


	5. Doubts

**Hey yo guys! Time for Chapter 5!**

**So far, I don't know how my Internship days would go. Not really want to go into details, so let's just leave it at that.**

**I noticed that the archive's almost dead now? There are like only few people visiting the archive (Not that I really know, just a gut feeling). I wonder why. **

**To Telstra:**** Thanks for the offer, but I received a copy from my friend of the LN Volumes 11-13. I've read everything, including the side stories, aside from these three.**

**To Bulldan:**** Thanks for the encouragement!**

**Anyways, I wanna thank the people who were still following my story. I'm gonna finish this fic in a short way possible but not rushed. There should be at least one or two more chapters before the trip but I decided to do a timeskip and get to it already.**

**So, I'm sorry if anyone didn't like the sudden timeskip. I really don't have any attachment to Date A Live anymore (Though Mayuri and Kurumi were still pulling me back :D ). Maybe if I go back to reading the novels, since I just got a PDF copy of Volume 11 to 13 from my friend. (The novels in Baka-Tsuki got taken down by the way)**

**By the way, I don't remember how Miku calls Yoshino (with honorific –chan or –san) so I'll go with –san since she calls everyone like that.**

**So onto the chappie now, Khorosho~!**

* * *

"Got everything you need?" A certain blue-haired young man asked his so-called cousin, who was already pulling her luggage out of her room.

"No problems here."

The blue-haired boy nodded. "Let's go."

**~o~O~o~**

After a few moments, they went out of the house, and was greeted by 5 girls outside their gates.

"Shidou! Shiori!" One of the girls, who has a dark-night colored hair, called as she waved at the two people going out of the house.

"Good morning, everyone." Shidou and Shiori greeted as they got out of the gates.

The rest of the girls greeted back. They seemed to be pretty excited about this trip. Well, they held back for a week; couldn't really blame them.

"Now we just need Reine-san to-"

Speaking of the devil, a car, no, a van stopped by them.

"…Hop in."

"Reine-san! You're coming also?" Shidou asked.

"…No, I'll just take you to the airport." Reine said as she stepped out of the van and went to the back. "…Put your luggage here." She said and opened the back of the van.

The vehicle is quite big. It's a van, after all. This was different than the one they used before when there were only Tohka and Yoshino present. It was the time when they were on the trip to the hot springs, or something like that.

Where and when Reine did acquire this vehicle is something that Shidou didn't bother to ask.

After a few minutes of organizing, everyone hopped in the vehicle and they drove to the airport.

**~o~O~o~**

After a few minutes, they arrived at the airport. Reine helped them with their luggage as they checked in.

"Thanks for everything, Reine-san." Shidou said as they're ready to cross the waiting area.

"…Don't mention it." Reine said as she tried to give a smile to the boy. "…Keep your earpiece just in case, okay?"

Shidou nodded.

Reine then left the airport as the seven high schoolers bid her goodbye.

"Confirm. Time for the waiting game." Yuzuru said as she sat down on the bench.

"This ain't a waiting game, Yuzuru." Kaguya said.

"Refute. But we're still waiting, aren't we?"

"Well, you're not incorrect…But-"

Shidou sighed. He could've wished that the plane would arrive already before the bickering of these two would get bigger.

"I know what you feel, Shidou…" Shiori said as she sighed.

Shidou didn't reply. Waiting for the plane to get ready is really long when you're paying close attention to it.

**~o~O~o~**

After more or less half an hour of travel in air, their plane landed off on Arubi Island Airport. They took care of their respective luggage before heading out of the airport and climbing up a cab to their designated hotel. The cab could only fit three passengers, so they occupied three cabs as well. Three in one cab, and two in the other two. Nobody wants to ride in a cab alone, anyway.

"Is it alright to put Kaguya and Yuzuru in the same cab?" Shiori asked as she got Goosebumps.

"Those two are inseparable, whatever the circumstances." Tohka said.

"I can't agree more." Shidou said.

Meanwhile, in the said cab,

"Oi, Yuzuru! You took my potato chips again?!" Kaguya said as she rummaged on her luggage. "I was saving it for-!"

"Interject. I was hungry last night. I couldn't help myself." Yuzuru sneered.

"Why, you…!"

The driver just sighed and didn't bother silencing them.

**~o~O~o~**

The third cab is where Miku, Yoshinon, and Yoshino were together. They weren't saying anything to each other, probably because they're not really that close, or nothing to talk about.

Things couldn't get more awkward more than it was already, and the three of them knows it as well.

So, the older girl decided to break the ice.

"Say, Yoshino-san, how did you and darling meet?"

The younger girl was startled with Miku's sudden question. Well, they really haven't much talked to each other since she moved to the apartment complex. That's why she didn't know how to respond to her.

So, her puppet, Yoshinon, decided to speak for her.

"**Well, Miku-chan, Yoshino and-"**

Immediately, Yoshino covered Yoshinon's mouth.

"Ara?"

Yoshino decided to speak for herself.

"S-Shidou-san… and I… met in a… shrine…" Yoshino said.

"Oh? How was darling back then?"

Their conversation continued. Yoshino told Miku everything about her encounters with Shidou, about how Shidou helped her in finding Yoshinon when she went missing.

"A-And, I decided to… trust Shidou-san… because he saved me… from the AST…" Yoshino continued. "And… risking his life… for me… when we were… just strangers…"

Miku smiled after hearing Yoshino's story. She learned that Shidou has never changed, from before and after she met him.

"That sounds like darling, I see."

With that, both of them flashed a smile.

**~o~O~o~**

It was around eleven in the morning when they arrived at their destination. The hotel they were staying is far better than the one they occupied during the school trip. Probably because the school's short on funds or they really can't afford to reserve a hotel like this for all the students.

What's more, this hotel is near the seaside, so all is well.

"Kuku, this place is not half bad." Kaguya said as she stared at the hotel with sparkly eyes.

"Agree. This place is great." Yuzuru said with same sparkly eyes as her sister.

Miku stepped behind the twins and pushed them. "Alright, stop staring at the front door and let's get going now."

They then went inside the hotel and checked in. As their rooms were assigned, Shidou was somehow gloomy, but he kind of expected it.

"Don't worry Shidou, I'll visit you from time to time!" Tohka said.

"Ara, Darling, want me to stay in your room?" Miku said as she licked her lips.

"You…! What are you planning?!"

They aren't helping at all.

They've been given only three rooms, with Tohka, Shiori, and Yoshino in one room, while Kaguya, Yuzuru, and Miku in the other room.

For Shidou, of course, he's alone. It's obvious why.

In an instant, Kaguya and Yuzuru grabbed Miku by the arm. "Don't worry Shidou, we'll make sure that this girl will behave properly." Kaguya said. "Let's go, Yuzuru."

"Accept. We're going to our room now."

Miku was protesting but she couldn't break free from the twin's chains.

"Will she be alright?" Shiori asked as she stared at the direction where the three have gone.

"She will be. That's not enough to bring her down." Shidou said. "I'll be in my room. Let's meet back here in half an hour, and then we can go to the seaside. Don't forget to tell Kaguya, Yuzuru, and Miku, okay?"

Tohka, Yoshino, and Shiori nodded and they headed to their room as well.

Shidou wandered around the second floor of the hotel, as his room was designated here. He's not really a directionally-challenged person, so there would be no problems in finding it.

"Let's see… room 216…"

He looked at every number plate attached on the doors, and stopped as he finally found the said number.

He then unlocked the room with the key he received and opened the door, but the next event is seriously not something he was expecting.

"Ara, Shidou-san?"

In an instant, he closed the door.

"I didn't make a mistake, did I?" He asked himself. He then double checked the room number, and it clearly said 216.

With that, his face turned red.

Well, he just saw a girl wearing undergarments only, on the bed. Anyone would panic if they saw something like that.

And what's more, he knew this girl personally.

"Shidou-san~ Come in here, or else I won't be able to guarantee your safety~" A seductive voice spoke from inside the room. "We both know that you can't escape from me~"

Shidou gulped. His sweat's running down on his cheeks, and feeling nervous about abiding with the order.

But he had no choice.

He touched the doorknob, turned it, closed his eyes and opened the door. He went inside and closed the door.

"Ara, Shidou-san, open your eyes, I'm not naked anymore."

Shidou didn't want to believe it but he had to follow the order. He then slowly opened his eyes, and sighed in relief as he saw the girl wearing a black one piece dress, which she _usually_ wear most of the time.

"For the love of God, don't do that again, Kurumi…" Shidou said as he leaned on the door.

Yes, the girl inside Shidou's room was Tokisaki Kurumi. The spirit deemed to be the cruelest and most dangerous spirit of all times.

Shidou put his stuff inside the closet and sat down on a chair before initiating a conversation.

"So, what business do you have here, Kurumi? And why are you in my room, of all places?"

Kurumi snickered. "Ara, getting straight to the point already? I'm pretty disappointed, Shidou-san."

Shidou narrowed his eyes as he stared at the heterochromatic spirit girl. She just had this smile on her face as she stared back at him.

Shidou sighed.

"It would be bad if Tohka saw you in here." Shidou said.

Kurumi was surprised with his reply.

"Ara, you're concerned about my safety?"

Shidou blushed. Well, of course, Kurumi is too powerful even for Tohka to handle, but knowing about the spirit's inversion, he couldn't be more cautious.

"That's one thing, but I'm more concerned with mine." Shidou said.

Kurumi chuckled. "That's true."

"So, what brings you here? You wouldn't be here just to hang around, right?"

Kurumi stood up and walked to the door. She then locked it and went back to the bed, giving Shidou some slight shivers down in his spine.

"I'm interested with a certain someone in your gang." Kurumi said.

Shidou crossed his arms before speaking, "Let me guess, Shiori, isn't it?"

"Ara, you're quick to catch, Shidou-san."

"Well, she had been the center of attention since she got here." Shidou said. "So, what piqued your interests to her?"

Kurumi fell silent for a bit. True, she was indeed interested with the mysteries around the said girl, but at the same time, she doesn't have the slightest idea about her; why she's here, and her objective.

"First of all, Shidou-san, do you believe that she's not from this world?" Kurumi asked.

Shidou recalled back what Kotori said to him. She said the same thing as Kurumi, but there's no proof of it being true_ yet_.

"Kotori said the same thing, but there's no evidence yet, so I don't." Shidou said.

"I see."

The room went silent for a few moments, before Shidou broke the ice.

"Uhm, I want to ask something, if you don't mind, Kurumi…" Shidou said.

Kurumi tilted her head.

"What makes you think that she's not from this world?" Shidou asked.

"Want me to spell it out for you?" Kurumi grinned.

Shidou immediately regretted asking that. "Aside from me crossdressing as her before, yes please."

Truth to be told, it was just Kurumi's hunches, as there's no solid evidence that proves that she's really not from this world. She just based every hypothesis she had from the past events, as the timing's _too perfect_ to be called coincidence.

"I have no solid proof, but if I could peek inside her memories, then-"

"Hey, that's crossing the line already!" Shidou interrupted Kurumi before she could finish her sentence.

By peeking inside her memories, Kurumi will use the power of Zaphkiel's tenth bullet, Yud. It gives her the ability to peek inside her target's memories; his or her past.

"I know Shidou-san, but I'm doing this for her sake, for myself, and especially for you." Kurumi said with a serious expression.

Shidou was surprised with Kurumi's words. He never thought that she's doing something for someone's sake. Unlike before when she helped him infiltrate DEM to save Tohka; this time, she's asking for nothing in return.

In the end, he failed to say anything as a reply.

"Think about it, Shidou-san. If my hypothesis is true, who would be responsible for sending her here?" Kurumi asked.

Shidou gave it a thought. Actually, he didn't need to think about it further, as the answer's already right in front of him.

"You…" He said in a low voice.

"Yes, the 'me' in the future. But, in a different world line." She said. "I want to confirm if that's really possible."

"Will you help me, Shidou-san?" Kurumi asked.

Shidou didn't know how to respond to that. It was the first time that he received a request from Kurumi. It's true that she revealed her every intentions to him, but he couldn't shake the idea of her still hiding something from him.

But he can't leave things as it is right now. He wants to know the truth as well.

"But… we have a problem." Shidou said.

Kurumi tilted her head once more. "What is it?"

"She doesn't have any memories of her past."

Kurumi's eyes widened after hearing his answer. Well, that seriously would be a problem. She wouldn't be able to peek inside her memories if she doesn't have them to begin with.

"Oh my, that's really a problem." Kurumi said.

"I just said that, you know?"

They didn't say anything afterwards as they thought of a way to handle the problem they have in hand. Recovering or restoring someone's memory isn't an easy feat, especially when the root of the loss is unknown.

"I don't have the power to do that, so I'll leave it to your hands, Shidou-san." Kurumi said and winked at him. "You're close to her, and I bet that you've been working towards that goal as well."

He couldn't disagree with that.

"But why would you need to peek in her memories, when she would tell us everything once she have it back?" Shidou asked.

Kurumi swung her head before answering his question. "No, Shidou-san. I don't think it would be that simple. There must be something more than meets the eye on her memory loss."

Shidou didn't quite understand what she meant by that, and Kurumi knew what he was thinking.

"I know you're confused, Shidou-san. It's hard to explain it right now." Kurumi said as she made a small frown. That was a look of concern, to Shidou, at least. "I'll fill you in once I have my answers, so please just help her in recovering her memories."

"Easier said than done…" Shidou said.

"I know, but you're the only one who could do it." Kurumi said and smiled.

Shidou could feel his heart fluttering every time she smiles. He didn't know why, but he couldn't refuse her request if she made an expression like that.

"Alright, I'll do my best."

"Thank you, Shidou-san. I owe you one." Kurumi said. "I'll be off somewhere, I didn't mean to keep you from having fun with your girlfriends." She said as a shadow appeared behind her.

"I'll see you later, Shidou-san." She then winked at him before disappearing from the room.

Shidou sighed. He seriously had no idea about what Kurumi was implying. And he wasn't sure if he wanted to know it either.

He fixed his stuff before heading back to the lobby.

**~o~O~o~**

The gang ate their lunch before going to the seaside. No one wants to pass out from hunger while swimming in the sea, right?

They brought their necessities; whatever they needed in their leisure.

"It's the ocean!"

"It's the ocean!"

Kaguya and Tohka shouted in unison.

"Kyah! I really wanted to do that!" Kaguya said and jumped in to the seawater. "Wooh, the water's cold."

"Ask. Are you a kid?" Yuzuru asked as she walked in the water.

Kaguya just sneered at her sister.

Shidou just smiled unconsciously as he stared at them. This is the peaceful daily life that he had been wishing for all of them. And for him as well.

"I wonder where Shiori is." Shidou said as he counted the numbers. Shiori was definitely nowhere to be found.

"She said that she's not ready yet, and told us that we should go ahead." Tohka said.

Shidou wondered why though. Well, she'll be here in a few moments, so it's no problem having a head start first.

"Why don't you girls join them? I'll set the umbrellas up." Shidou said to the other girls.

The rest of the girls nodded at him and ran to the seawater, leaving Shidou alone. He stuck the umbrellas on the sand, making it stay in place. Snacks and drinks were all set as well.

"Phew, that should do it." He said as he wiped the sweat on his forehead. He then took his earpiece from his bag and wore it, followed by a sigh of relief.

"Are you alright, Shidou?" A female voice suddenly spoke behind him. He turned around and saw a girl with long, blue-hair, wearing a yellow two piece swimsuit, along with a very short skirt.

Shidou found himself staring at her for a few seconds, making the said girl embarrassed.

"S-Shidou, you're staring at me too much…" She said as she covered her body with her arms.

Shidou snapped back as he realized what he was doing. "A-Ah, I'm s-sorry, Shiori!" He then averted his eyes from her.

Shiori blushed. "A-Aren't you g-going to say s-something to me…?"

Shidou knew what she meant by that. Of course, it's a common thing to say 'that' after what just happened. He slowly turned to Shiori, which made him blush as well. Her curves fitted on her swimsuit perfectly; she looked like a gravure model with that outfit.

"Y-You look… great."

Shiori's heart thumped. "I-Is that so…? T-That's a relief- Kyaaah!"

The next event made Shidou avert his eyes once more.

"Oyaa, what do we have here?" A certain orange-haired girl said as she grabbed onto Shiori's chest.

"K-Kaguya…! What a-are y-you d-doing- A-Ahnn!"

Shiori tried to break free, but Kaguya's arms were too strong.

"Ugh, w-what is this…!" Kaguya said as she slid her hands under Shiori's top. "I didn't know you're this big…! You're even bigger than me!" She said as she fondled her mountains of heaven, embarrassing the blue-haired girl more.

"W-What a-are you s-saying?!"

After a few moments, someone pulled Kaguya away from Shiori. "Order. Stop it now, Kaguya. That's sexual harassment."

It was Yuzuru. Kaguya's twin sister, who grabbed her by the arms as she got pulled.

Kaguya didn't say anything and just clicked her tongue, leaving the blue-haired teenage girl troubled.

"What's going on-" A girl with indigo-colored hair appeared from nowhere, who stopped on her tracks as she saw Shiori in her swimsuit.

"M-Miku?" Shiori called. The said girl was staring at her with blank expression.

Miku didn't say anything. The atmosphere around them became tense.

"Yoshino-san, camera please." Miku said as she extended her right arm. In an instant, Yoshino appeared from behind Shidou, surprising him, and went to Miku, giving her the camera.

Shiori gulped. She's got a bad feeling about this.

As the camera was turned on, Miku disappeared from her place.

""""Eh?""""

The next thing they knew was Miku's already taking insane amount of photos of Shiori from different angles.

"Ehehehe~ This is heaven…!" Miku said as she kept on flashing her camera to Shiori while drooling.

Shiori couldn't be more embarrassed than she was already as she tried to protect herself from Miku's camera.

"H-H-Hey, Stop it, M-Miku!"

Despite Shiori's orders, Miku didn't stop. Most likely she couldn't hear her cry.

But that didn't last long. Tohka appeared from nowhere and hit Miku on the head, stopping her sexual assault to Shiori.

"What the hell are you doing?!" Tohka said as she grabbed Miku by the arms, who was half-unconscious.

Seeing that as an opening, Shiori immediately ran to the water.

"Hey, get back here!" Kaguya said as she followed Shiori.

"Not a chance!"

Shidou just stared at them. He couldn't help but smile at the scene playing in front of him, despite of it being a chaotic one, as they're attracting too much attention from the people around them.

"…-in?"

Shidou didn't quite hear what the noise was. It probably came from his earpiece.

"…Shin?"

It was Reine.

"Reine-san? What's up?" Shidou said as he focused on the earpiece.

"…I need to have a word with you." Reine said through the earpiece. "…Meet me back in the hotel lobby. This is urgent."

"Alright, I'll be on my way." Shidou said.

He then turned to Tohka, who was still attending on the unconscious Miku. "Tohka, I need to make a phone call. I'll be back in a few." Shidou said.

"Uh, okay?"

"Thanks. Please do tell the others." Shidou said and walked away as he put on his jacket. "I'll be right back."

Tohka was left dumbfounded with Shidou's words.

**~o~O~o~**

Shidou got back to the Hotel's lobby in less than five minutes. He looked around and saw Reine sitting on a bench. She's not wearing any summer nor beach outfit, implying that she's not really ready for this trip. Well, she did say that she's not coming anyway.

"What's going on, Reine-san?" He asked as he approached the said woman.

"…Sit down, we have a lot to talk about." Reine said as she patted the seat beside her.

Shidou knew that this was a serious matter, so he abided with Reine's request.

"…I overheard your conversation with Kurumi earlier." Reine said.

Shidou was startled. "W-What…?"

"…Don't worry, I have no intentions of leaking whatever private talks you had with her." Reine reassured the boy.

So she did know.

"…Anyways, getting back on topic…"

Shidou paid more attention.

"…With what Kurumi just said that Shiori's not from this world, is something that we cannot simply ignore, even without evidence." Reine said.

Shidou knew it. It's true that even if Kurumi just said it without proof, just by her mentioning it is a piece of evidence already. Because she could manipulate time, it's possible that her future self in another world line is the one responsible for sending her here. Actually, it was the only plausible thing that they could believe on.

But how and why did 'she' send her here is a different matter.

"I didn't want to believe it either, but Kurumi herself said that the possibility of it happening is not zero." Shidou said. "Most likely, that's really the case."

"…Then you know that her memories are the key to knowing it?" Reine asked.

Shidou nodded. "Yes, I know, but recovering it is not an easy task."

They went silent for a while and thought for a way to recover Shiori's memories. In the big picture, Shiori's memories were sealed; that's the only possibility that could happen. Because the memories that she doesn't remember were _too specific_.

Until Reine thought of something.

"…In that case, how about this?" Reine said and ordered Shidou to come closer.

Shidou nodded and abided with Reine's request. The older woman then whispered something on his ear. Afterwards, Shidou tilted backwards due to surprise and shock with Reine's idea.

"A-A-Are you s-serious, Reine-san?!"

Reine's expression didn't show anything other than serious. She's definitely serious with her idea.

"…It's the only way I could think of, unless you have a better idea, then we'll roll with that." Reine said.

Shidou couldn't say anything in return. It's true that he doesn't have the slightest idea about recovering Shiori's memory, but doing _that_ of all things?

Shidou took a deep breath to calm his heart down. He tried sorting everything in his mind, but seems like he couldn't.

"L-Let me think about it for a bit, Reine-san."

Reine didn't say anything and just let Shidou do what he wanted, for now.

* * *

**Alright, Chappie 5 is done!**

**Okay, if you haven't read my status in my FB page, chapter 6 won't arrive soon. I need to read Volume 12 of the novels first as my ideas might have contradictions with it if I don't read it. I haven't started it by the way, and I don't think I could in the next few days. But if not, then it's good.**

**I might retract what I said in the first chappie that this would be a slice of life fic. Still no fighting though.**

**Just so you know guys, the story's near the end.**

**Anyways, please do drop your reviews/comments/suggestions/violent reactions! It does help me improve my writing.**

**Until next time, See 'ya!**


	6. Emergence

**Hello guys! Time for chapter 6!**

**The DAL archive is dying xD Well, can't be helped. With the novels got hit by DMCA (I think?) hence the translations completely abandoned and taken down, plus there's no new contents (OVA, seasons, etc.), it's really not surprising. I couldn't even read Nia Creation properly because the PDF ver I got is not proofread, and it's killing my eyes. If I have time, I could edit it, but work comes first.**

**I didn't find any information regarding Arubi Island, so I will be making things up, most of it.**

**To Cryocene: I got it all covered. Don't worry :) But if people would accept it or not is a different story, and in my own perspective, it's gonna be a mindblowing revelation and seemingly implausible.**

**So, there's that! Let's get on the chappie now, Khorosho~ Enjoy!**

* * *

It was already past twelve in the afternoon when Shidou got back to their spot. He saw the girls playing beach volleyball, with Yoshino as the umpire. They noticed Shidou's arrival and waved at him, inviting him to join them, but Shidou didn't feel like playing and just waved back at them, implying that he's not going to join.

With that, they resumed their game. Let's expect a not-so-normal game, shall we?

He then turned his attention to the blue-haired girl participating in the match. He couldn't help but feel flustered while staring at her. Mostly because of what he and Reine talked about earlier, the other reason is still filled with uncertainties.

He averted his eyes from her.

'There's no other meaning on it…'

Or so he thought.

'It's for recovering her memories…'

Oh, really?

These thoughts kept on circling in his mind.

'Yeah, it's for recovering her memories.'

If you're wondering what that method of recovering her memories is, let's go back a few minutes earlier.

**~o~O~o~**

**(FLASHBACK)**

"…In that case, how about this?" Reine said and ordered Shidou to come closer.

Shidou nodded and abided with Reine's request. Shidou moved closer to Reine. The older woman moved near Shidou's ear and whispered at him.

"…Make her fall in love with you, and kiss her, like what you did to the spirits." Reine blatantly said.

Afterwards, Shidou tilted backwards due to surprise and shock from Reine's idea.

"A-A-Are you s-serious, Reine-san?!"

Reine's expression didn't show anything other than serious. She's definitely serious with her idea.

"…It's the only way I could think of, unless you have a better idea, then we'll roll with that." Reine said.

**~o~O~o~**

Shidou sighed.

That kind of method is a plausible one, yet Shidou couldn't feel any comfortable with it. Why so? Because Shiori's not a spirit. She's not someone who's needed to be saved.

What's the difference, though? Shidou already made six spirits love him, adding another one is nothing new.

Yep, nothing new, but nothing better either.

Shidou swung his head to clear his thoughts off. There's no point on pondering about it when he doesn't have a better idea to throw back.

"I hope that things wouldn't turn out for the worst…" Shidou said in a low voice.

"…"

"What things, Shidou?"

"Well, it's about Shiori…" The moment Shidou said that, he also realized that he's already talking to someone else. And that someone was the person he wasn't expecting to be here, or rather, DOESN'T want to be here.

"O-O-O-Origami?!" Shidou immediately backed away from the said person.

Tobiichi Origami. His classmate, and a wizard working in AST. Tohka's archenemy.

"What about Shiori, Shidou?" Origami asked with a vague expression.

'This is not good' is what Shidou was thinking. Once Tohka sees her, it's gonna be chaotic.

But it's too late, Tohka's already running to Shidou, abandoning her match.

"Tobiichi Origami!" Tohka said as she did a flying kick to attack Origami, but it was easily dodged by the silver-haired girl. "What are you doing here?!"

Origami composed herself back. "Me being here or not is none of your concern."

"You…!" Tohka gritted her teeth. Origami was the last person she wanted to see here. "You didn't stay true with our agreement!"

If you're wondering what that agreement is, it was the rock-paper-scissors they did last week. This is also the reason why Shidou didn't want Origami to be here, because chaos ensues.

"I came here on my own, not with Shidou, so there's no problem, right?"

"Nu-!"

She's got a point though. The thing is, how Origami did know about their trip.

The rest of the girls aided Shidou in stopping the two before disaster could strike. Everyone knows that these two are onto each other's throats.

**~o~O~o~**

It's already around four in the afternoon. They're wrapping their stuff up and as soon as they were done, they headed back to the hotel. They separated ways after saying goodbye to each other. Well, they might see each other again later when they head to the bath, though.

Shidou arrived back in front of his room. He was already dead tired, judging from the events today. No need to repeat everything, it's pretty clear already.

He unlocked his room and went inside. He was expecting Kurumi to be in his room but she's nowhere to be found, which is a relief to him. He doesn't want to keep her close to him as much as possible. Not because that she's dangerous of sorts, but for some other obvious reasons.

He threw himself on the bed and sighed. He had a long day, for sure.

After a few moments, he felt a gentle breeze enter his room. He instantly turned to the window, as he was sure that he hasn't opened it since he arrived here. And there, it was indeed open, and at the same time, he learned that he wasn't alone in this room.

There's someone sitting on the window. That person is a girl that looks like around Shidou's age, with her hair tied in an uneven-length twin-tail style. She's wearing a bright, frilly vermillion dress; with heterochromatic eyes.

"Kurumi…"

Yes, it's Tokisaki Kurumi, also known as Nightmare. The spirit deemed to be the cruelest and most dangerous.

"Good afternoon, Shidou-san." Kurumi said as she stepped inside the room.

Shidou didn't reply. He's not really comfortable with Kurumi's constant sudden appearance.

"Ara, Shidou-san. Don't be afraid, I won't bite."

Shidou narrowed his eyes. "Doesn't look like it though."

Kurumi frowned. "My, Shidou-san doesn't have faith in me. It hurts." She said as she summoned a handkerchief and wiped her 'tears'.

Shidou made a problematic look. He seriously have no idea about what's running in Kurumi's mind.

"I-It's not like that! It's just…"

Just what though?

"I'm just kidding. Silly Shidou-san." Kurumi said as she stuck her tongue out. She then walked to the bed and sat down beside Shidou. "You're wondering why I'm here again, right?"

Shidou nodded slowly.

"Well, because I was wondering if you found a method for recovering Shiori-san's memories."

Shidou froze.

"Seems like you have an idea." Kurumi smirked.

Yes, he did have one, but that method is not one hundred percent acceptable, to him, at least. Either way, he should tell Kurumi about it, since they're working together.

"Kurumi, do you remember the first time we met?" Shidou asked.

"Ara, what brings you to this topic, Shidou-san?" Kurumi asked. She then realized that Shidou's expression has turned into a troubled one. With that impression, Kurumi knew that Shidou's forcing himself to talk about it.

"Of course, I do remember, Shidou-san." Kurumi answered. "We had a date, and did a lot of things together, right?"

Shidou nodded. He still didn't reply. Kurumi's getting impatient with Shidou, but she couldn't bring herself to get mad because of Shidou's expression.

Well, the topic they're talking about isn't really a good one. That date ended in a disaster, with Shidou witnessing Kurumi's clone killing people, and lately got killed by Mana.

"I'm sorry, Shidou-san." Kurumi apologized.

Shidou was surprised.

"N-No, don't worry about what happened that time." Shidou said. "Kurumi, do you remember what happened in our school's rooftop?"

Of course, she does remember that one.

"Yes, I do, why do you ask?" Kurumi's expression turned into a serious one. "Are you condemning me for what happened?"

Shidou's expression softened up. He then swung his head afterwards.

"I wouldn't stand for you when you were about to get blown into ashes by Kotori if I were to condemn you." He then smiled.

"Then what, Shidou-san? You're leaving me in the dark here."

Shidou was about to tell Kurumi about 'it', but then he felt a heartache before he could say anything, as he remembered 'Kurumi' get killed by Kurumi before Shidou could save her.

His smile disappeared.

"Do you… remember… what I said to her… before she died...?" Shidou asked as he looked away.

Kurumi was surprised. It was indeed an unpleasant talk for Shidou. She was wondering why he was talking about this in the first place, when it just brings bad memories for him. Well, she had an idea that the method he was talking about is hidden in that memory.

But what surprised her even more was how Shidou delivered his words about 'her' death. Shidou said that 'she died' instead of 'you killed her'.

She recalled back that memory…

**~o~O~o~**

**(FLASHBACK)**

"Kurumi, let me give you a chance to start over." Shidou said as he stared directly at Kurumi. The spacequake that was about to hit Raizen High and the barrier around the school was just lifted.

Kurumi glared at Shidou, followed by a sinister look. "Will you stop uttering this nonsense? Mind your own business. I don't want that."

The 'that' that they're talking about, was the thing about Shidou said to Kurumi this morning.

**~o~O~o~**

"_Kurumi." Shidou called my name._

"_Yes?" I said with a smile. Seriously, this ticks me off._

"_I've decided to save you." Shidou said with a straight face._

_That's surprising. I have no idea about what he's talking about. This guy's really mysterious._

"_That's a peculiar thing to say."_

_But he kept his composure. _

"_I won't let you kill people anymore." He said. "Nor let Mana kill you ever again."_

_This ticks me off, really. But I can't lose it._

"_Is that so?" I said and walked away._

**~o~O~o~**

"You can't know for sure unless you try it!" Shidou's voice got louder, which startled Kurumi.

"You, too, might enjoy living a normal life!" He continued. "Had you never even considered the possibility, you couldn't have enjoyed your date with me!"

Kurumi became troubled. She recalled everything back from their date. She did enjoy her time with him. She just realized it now, when Shidou's this serious about saving her.

"But I…"

"I can do it! I know I can!" Shidou said with strong determination.

Kurumi gasped.

"You must make amends for everything you've done!" He said. "But Kurumi, I don't care about how many sins you've committed."

"Because I will stop at nothing to save you!"

Kurumi became more afraid. She's afraid of Shidou. But his words were filled with resolve. He really wants to save her, even though she doesn't have an idea about it, nor if Shidou could even really do it. Shidou wants to give her a normal life, is what she thought about it.

She wanted to believe his words.

"But I…" Kurumi backed away for a little bit.

Shidou flashed a smile and offered his hand to Kurumi.

"Shidou-san…" Kurumi couldn't take it anymore. She extended her hand, tried to reach Shidou's hand, for him to take her wherever she could enjoy her life with him.

"Can I really…" She was about to hold onto Shidou's hand when suddenly…

**~o~O~o~**

**(END OF FLASHBACK)**

Kurumi immediately opened her eyes and stopped recalling that memory. Making her remember that memory just gave her an unpleasant feeling.

Either way, she has to give an answer to Shidou's question.

"Yes, I do, Shidou-san." Kurumi said. "I recall you uttering nonsense about saving 'me'."

"It's not nonsense!" Shidou said in a higher voice, which surprised Kurumi. "I still feel that way, Kurumi. I want to save you, but not until I have your consent."

"Because I know you still have a goal to achieve." Shidou said. His expression turned into a serious one.

Her heart was touched. Well, she can't bring herself to devour Shidou when he's this kind and caring.

"Alright, alright, let's get back to the topic." Kurumi said as she closed the previous discussion. "So, what are you implying now, Shidou-san?"

Shidou cleared his throat before speaking, "The method of 'saving' you, is the one that I'm going use."

Short silence.

"I don't get it, Shidou-san." Kurumi said. "You said about this thing, that saving me means that I might have a normal life."

Shidou nodded.

"But Shiori is not a spirit; she's a normal human, and already have a normal life. She doesn't need to be saved." Kurumi said. "But then again, about saving spirits, I have no idea how you do it."

Shidou tensed up a bit. He doesn't want to tell her that right now. Or rather, he doesn't want to ever tell her that unless she would give him her consent.

"I… I'll tell you about that some other time." Shidou said.

Kurumi had grown suspicious of Shidou, but she didn't bother prying about it since she knew that she won't be able to squeeze answers from him.

"Okay, then." Kurumi said as she stood up. "I'll visit again if I find a clue." She said and then disappeared into thin air.

Shidou sighed. Remembering that memory isn't really a good idea. It could've been easier if he just told her the exact method of sealing of spirit's Reiryoku, but somehow, he knew that he wouldn't be able to save Kurumi if he did.

He could still feel his heart in pain. That memory of 'Kurumi' really pains him. He could've saved her if he just took initiative in taking her hand, rather than waiting for her. But everything was beyond his expectations. He didn't even expect that the 'Kurumi' at that time was only a clone, and not the real one.

Even so, he couldn't help but feel heartbroken. A clone or not, 'Kurumi' is still 'Kurumi'. She's a person, with a soul and heart.

He lied down on the bed. There's no point in moping over her death. Because he knew, that she wouldn't want him to cry over her. He has to deal with the problem in front of him right now.

He just wished that he could see 'Kurumi' once more, but he knew that it will never happen.

He hit his cheeks as he sat up on the bed and made a plan for tomorrow.

**~o~O~o~**

It's already past seven in the evening as Shidou got out of his room and hit the baths. He saw the girls minus one leaving already as he entered the bath's lobby.

"Oh, Shidou! Decided to hit the baths too?" The girl with dark-night hair said as she waved to Shidou.

Shidou approached them. "Yeah, I just finished our plans for tomorrow." He then gave a thumbs up.

"Ooohhhh!"

He noticed that there's someone missing in their group. "By the way, I don't see Shiori anywhere. Where's she?"

"She said she had to take care of something important, and she'll try to catch up, but she hasn't shown herself yet." Kaguya said.

"I see." Shidou said. "I'll enter the baths now, goodnight to all of you."

"Good night!" The girls said, with one of them added 'Darling'.

"Yuzuru, we're having a ping pong match!" Kaguya challenged.

"Accept. Bring it on."

Shidou just chuckled at them and entered the baths.

**~o~O~o~**

Shidou sunk himself in the water. The bath is open-spaced, and the water's just at the right temperature. Add the starry skies, the view couldn't be more pleasant than it is already.

"What a peaceful night…"

He wished that these days would last. No more spirit activities and spacequakes. He wanted Tohka and the other girls to experience more of this world, and have a normal life. And there they have it.

But he can't relax yet, unless he solves the mystery thrown at him. And that is, uncovering Shiori's true identity, in which will be revealed once she recovers her memory. And of course, it's no easy task, but he has to do everything in his power to make it happen.

"-Shidou…?"

He heard a voice call his name, and looked around, but saw nobody around. He then realized whose voice was that.

"Shiori…?" He called back.

"Yes, it's me, Shidou. I'm at the other side of the bath." She said.

So this bath is connected. That thought alone made Shidou blush a little. Well, it's better than both of them being in the same bath. Scratch that; technically, they're in the same bath.

Good thing Kaguya didn't pull a prank on them. She has a tendency to do so whenever she gets the chance.

"What's up?" Shidou asked, trying to act composed, but the thought of him being close to Shiori even if there's a tall wall that separates them makes him flushed.

"Well, I was just wondering… if you could accompany me… the day after tomorrow." Shiori said.

Shidou didn't quite get what she meant. "Okay…? But we can all go together, so-" He was interrupted before he could finish his sentence.

"No, Shidou… there's a place that… I wanted to go… with you… alone…" Shiori said in a low voice, but enough for him to catch.

"Okay…?"

"D-Don't misunderstand! T-T-This isn't a d-date or something!" Shiori said.

"I wasn't trying to…" Shidou said.

Shiori popped a nerve. "You blockhead…" She said in a low voice.

"Hmm? Did you say something?"

"N-No! I didn't! Stop asking me weird questions!" Shiori said. Her face's getting redder by just talking to Shidou.

Shidou didn't reply to her and just sighed in disappointment. Yep, disappointment.

"Hey, Shidou…?" Shiori called.

"Hmm?"

"This trip… is a way for me to recover my memories… right?" She said.

Shidou froze. Seems like he can't hide anything from her. Add that he's bad at keeping secrets and lying. Not like he's planning to hide it from her anyways.

"Well, you're only half correct. This was originally Tohka's plan, right before you transferred." Shidou answered.

Shiori frowned for a bit, but looked on the brighter side and smiled. "Is that so…?"

"What's wrong?"

Shiori tensed up for a bit. "N-No, it's nothing." She said. "I'm heading out now." She then rose from the water.

"Ah, I'll go out as well." Shidou said and did the same. "I'll see you outside, I wanna talk to you more for a bit."

Shiori's cheeks went red after hearing Shidou's word. Good going.

"O-Okay, I'll see you later." Shiori said and went back inside the changing rooms.

**~o~O~o~**

Shiori got out of the bath and saw Shidou sitting on a bench near the Ping-Pong table. Tohka and the others have gone to their respective rooms already as it's past eight already, and they've got a big day tomorrow, so they can't afford to be sleep deprived.

"So, Shidou, what did you want to talk about?" Shiori said as she approached the young man sitting on the bench, who seemed to be spacing out a bit. "Shidou?"

Shidou was startled. "A-Ah, Shiori. You're here." He said and sighed in relief.

Shiori sat down beside him. "Come on, why are you so deep in thought?"

Shidou didn't say anything for a few moments. "It's about memories…"

Shiori's heart raced a little after hearing his words. "I'm sorry Shidou, I still don't-"

Shidou interrupted her before she could say more. "No, it's not about your... screw it, it's still about your memories… but I am referring to mine…"

Shiori raised an eyebrow. She doesn't have the slightest idea about what Shidou is talking about.

"Like you, I've also lost my memories. Memories of five years ago and beyond that, but I remembered a portion of them recently…" Shidou said.

Shiori somehow got the feeling of not wanting to hear any more of it, but she couldn't find her voice.

"The memories I've remembered weren't something you could derive happiness from." Shidou continued. "In fact, it gave me a lot of confusion and sadness, in which I could've wished that I shouldn't have remembered it in the first place."

Shiori's didn't answer.

"I don't want you to experience that kind of thing, so I've been having thoughts of preventing you from recovering your memories." Shidou said.

Shiori was surprised.

Shidou chuckled lightly. "I'm such a bad person, ain't I?"

But Shiori couldn't bring herself to get angry at Shidou. To her, he didn't say all of those words out of bad intentions, but instead, he said it out of concern. It's true that the memories she had could have bad experiences and worse, traumas.

But still, they're her memories. Forgetting or not wanting to remember your memories is like running away from your past, be it a good or bad one.

Shiori unconsciously placed her hand on top of Shidou's head and gave him a pat.

"S-Shiori…?"

It took her about ten seconds before realizing what she was doing, and blushed. But she didn't retreat.

"You know, Shidou…" Shiori said as she took her hand back and leaned on the backrest of the bench. "Even if it's a bad memory, I still would want to remember it. Because they're mine, and mine alone."

Shidou didn't understand why.

"I know you're already mentally asking why, but… I can't just run away from it for my own convenience." Shiori said. "It would be a cowardly act for me if I would want to forget or not remember my past just because something didn't work my way."

"Be it a good or bad memory, I still would want to remember it. It would be a proof for me that these memories were the reason why I am here, sitting beside you right now."

Shidou blushed from her last sentence. Shiori just realized what she just said and immediately looked away from him due to embarrassment.

"I-I-It's just a figure of speech! There's no deeper meaning on it, okay?!" Shiori said.

Shidou laughed at her.

"What's so funny?!"

Shidou tried to hold back his laughter by calming his stomach down. Wait, that doesn't make sense in a way.

"Sorry." Shidou said as he finally calmed himself down. "You're so strong, Shiori."

Shiori's embarrassment died down as she realized that Shidou's back to his normal composure. "Like you're the one to talk."

"Yeah, you're right. I should've known that your answer would be like that."

Shidou just laughed at himself, and Shiori did as well.

Their conversation continued and so the night as well. It was already half past nine when they realized what time it was already.

"Oh, it's already this late?" Shiori said as she noticed the time on the clock near the entrance of the bath. "I better get going now."

"Alright, goodnight, Shiori." Shidou said as he parted ways with Shiori and waved at her.

"Goodnight as well, Shidou~" Shiori said and winked at him, making the boy blush.

Shidou sighed in relief as Shiori disappeared from the bath lounge. Truth to be told, Shiori's a bit unpredictable. She does some things out of the ordinary and then returns to her usual self after a bit. Not like it's a bad thing, though Shidou couldn't shake off some uncertainties in his mind with regards to her.

'I guess I'm just being overly conscious about it…'

With those thoughts, he went back to his room.

**~o~O~o~**

Shidou got back in his room. But there was something weird going on in the room. He could smell a sweet fragrance spread around, in which he wondered if he was using something like a perfume or an air freshener.

But no, he doesn't remember doing that.

At the same moment, he realized that he wasn't alone in his room, again. There _she_ is, sitting on Shidou's bed, smiling at him the moment he entered the room.

And also, he realized that the sweet smell belongs to _her_.

"Did you use some kind of air freshener in this room, Kurumi?" Shidou asked the girl on the bed.

Yes, it was Tokisaki Kurumi, or also known as Nightmare. She's wearing her casual one piece dress, with her hair tied in an uneven length, and her bangs covering her left eye.

"That's rude, Shidou-san. It's the perfume I just bought earlier." Kurumi said as she narrowed her eyes.

"I'm surprised. Where are you getting your funds?"

Kurumi tensed up a bit.

Shidou had gotten suspicious with her actions.

"I-I have my own ways. You do not think that I do not know anyone aside from you guys in the whole world, right?" She tried to give an excuse.

Shidou didn't seem to be convinced with her answer, but he has no proof that she's not saying the truth.

"Okay then. Please refrain from using that inside my room."

Kurumi nodded and sighed in relief.

"And please refrain from barging in my room whenever you get the chance! I don't know what to do if someone finds you here."

Kurumi didn't say anything and just stuck her tongue out as she walked to the window.

"Geez, for crying out loud…" He said and sat down on bed. "So, what brings you here now? It hasn't been even a day since you were gone."

Kurumi didn't say anything as she just opened the windows and let the wind enter the room. The lights inside the room were turned off, so the moonlight illuminated the dark room.

"The night seems to be going a little restless…" Kurumi muttered.

Shidou didn't quite hear what Kurumi just said. "Hmm? Did you say something?"

"Nope. I didn't." Kurumi said as she swung her head. "I'll be on my way, Shidou-san. Good night~" She winked at the boy and disappeared.

Shidou sighed and lied down on his bed. It's a bit uncomfortable that Kurumi tries to break in her room every time he's in here, but he didn't hate her company. In fact, he does like it. Just the continuous sneaking of hers isn't a good thing.

After a few moments, he fell asleep.

**~o~O~o~**

_Fire._

_There's a large fire. A sea of fire._

_I could see the flames in below from where I am sitting, from a high ground, burning everything it touches. I don't know what caused this. It's burning everything to ashes._

_I can't stand the sight of it._

_I turn to the left side; it's the same. The fire is eating away everything._

_What could've happened?_

_I turn to the right side. There is no difference. Raging flames are everywhere, destroying everything._

_I turn around, and I realized that I'm not alone. There is this girl, wearing a combination of black and white dress, along with a rose bowtie. She's wearing a rose headband as well, with her eyes under her dark hair._

_But the important thing that I noticed about her is, she is holding a gun, and it is pointed towards me._

_I do not know what's going on. First, there's fire everywhere. Second, there's a girl pointing a gun towards my head._

_But surprisingly, I don't feel threatened at all. I'm only nervous._

_Her finger moved to the gun's trigger, and I suddenly feel numb. I couldn't move a single muscle, and I couldn't say anything as I stare at the girl's face._

_But still, why don't I feel threatened?_

_Her lips moved, but I can't comprehend whatever she's saying, because I could not hear a single thing. My mind is blank, my body is numb, and my voice is gone. I'm a hopeless person._

_I'm going to die._

_I'm going to die._

_I'm going to die._

_I'm going to die._

_I'm going to die._

_There's no way I can survive this._

_But still, why don't I feel threatened?_

_I don't want to die._

_I don't want to die._

_I don't want to die._

_I don't want to die._

_I haven't fulfilled my promise to _her_ yet._

_Promise? What promise? And a promise to who?_

_I don't know what that promise is, nor the person I made a promise with. Why did I think such things all of a sudden?_

_And in an instant, my vision became black._

**~o~O~o~**

_**It has ended.**_

**~o~O~o~**

* * *

**Alright! Chappie six is done! Did it look like an epilogue? XD But nope! It's not the epilogue yet :)**

**Well, my internship is done, so I think I can have more time writing this fic. It's just games are hindering my progress, hehe.**

**Please drop a review! Your comments, suggestions, violent reactions help me improve my writing!**

**By the way, if any of you has a link of a proofread Nia Creation and Mukuro Planet, please drop me a PM. Please, please, please :3**

**If you see some misspelled words, grammatical errors, please inform me via reviews/PM so I could fix it immediately. There are some stuff that I might've missed even if I proofread this thing more than ten times.**

**Until next time, see ya guys~**


	7. Reminiscence

**Hello guys! Time for Chapter 7! **

**Well, I understand why I'm getting so few feedbacks every chappie, xD I don't mind, as long as someone's giving their opinions and criticisms about the chapter, it's more than enough for me to finish this fic. (Though I gotta finish this quick because I still have a pending Love Live! Fic next)**

**Sorry for my very slow updating. God damnit I just got my hands on Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth 1 to 3, plus the Neptunia U: Action Unleashed and Hyperdevotion Noire: Goddess Black Heart; and Jesus, it's taking away all of my time. (I cleared almost everything on Re;Birth 1, acquired all dungeons, characters, maxed all of them at 999, etc.) **

**So, anyways, after this chappie, there might be a huge timeskip, sorry about that. I just don't want to add more filler chapters if I can help it. And it's probably going to be the last or second to the last chappie :(**

**One more thing, I don't know if the novels mention about Kurumi's time consumption when using Zaphkiel (Is there?), so I'll be pretty much making things up about it.**

**Onto the chappie now~ Enjoy! Khorosho~**

* * *

5:00AM.

Shidou woke up earlier than usual. His room's still dark, and the sun outside doesn't seem to be up yet. He closed his eyes again and tried to go back to sleep, but no, it seems like he couldn't.

Being a morning person does have its perks, but losses as well. Take this one as an example.

He sat up on his bed and stretched his arms up to ease the stiffness of his body from sleep. He can't afford to have body pains today because they have a big day ahead of them.

He was about to get out of his bed when he felt something block his lower body from under the sheets. He grabbed that something from above the sheets and felt a soft sensation on his palm.

"Huh?"

At the same moment, he heard something, like a moan. He squeezed whatever he was touching on his palm to check it once more.

"Ahn~"

In an instant, he took his hand back and pulled the sheets out of the bed. And there, he saw someone else than him on the bed.

"K-K-K-K-Kurumi?!"

Shidou instinctively jumped out of the bed.

The girl named Kurumi slowly sat up on the bed as she rubbed her eyes and yawned. "Oh, it's morning already?" She then directed her attention to Shidou.

"Good morning, Shidou-san~" Kurumi greeted.

"Good Morning too… NOT! What the heck are you doing here again?! And why were you sleeping next to me?!"

Kurumi chuckled.

"Now, now, spare me the little details, Shidou-san. As far as I'm concerned, you did good last night~" She said and winked at the flustered boy.

"Screw your teasing because I remember everything last night, so you're not tricking me today." Shidou said as he crossed his arms and sighed.

Kurumi clicked her tongue. "You're no fun, Shidou-san."

"Your fun is giving me a heart attack, in case you didn't know." Shidou said. "So, what's your business here again? I hope that you're not going to say that it's a hobby for you now to hang around here."

Kurumi chuckled a little. "Well, you're half-correct, but I have a different thing to discuss with you today."

Shidou decided to let 'that one' slide for now, and listened to whatever Kurumi's about to say. It seems pretty important, unless it's going to be another prank of hers, then he'll throw her out of the room for good.

"Mind if you accompany me to a walk, Shidou-san?" Kurumi requested.

Shidou hesitated for a bit, but decided to comply with her request.

"Okay, give me a minute."

**~o~O~o~**

Around five-thirty in the morning, Shidou and Kurumi went out of the hotel. The staff didn't even question Kurumi for leaving the hotel without logging out, making Shidou wonder why.

The skies were still a little dark, but the sun seems to be rising already. They were walking down the streets, not saying a word to each other. Kurumi's leading the way, while Shidou's just following her, not knowing where their destination is.

"Hey, Kurumi, where are we going?" Shidou asked.

Kurumi didn't reply as she just kept her pace with a smile on her lips. Shidou knew that Kurumi wouldn't tell her anything, so he gave up on that idea and just stayed behind her.

After a short moment, they arrived at a nearby park. It's still early in the morning so there's nobody around them yet.

Kurumi sat down on a bench, with Shidou following her and sat down beside her. Shidou turned to Kurumi and saw that her eyes were closed, almost like she's asleep.

"Hey, don't fall asleep on me now!" Shidou said as he shook the inattentive girl.

Kurumi pushed Shidou away in an instant. "I am not asleep, Shidou-san."

Shidou sighed in disbelief. He was wondering if Kurumi's tired, but immediately disregarded that thought because he knew that spirits don't get tired that easily.

"So, what did you want to talk about?" Shidou decided to break the ice.

The place turned silent as Kurumi didn't answer in return. Shidou didn't say anything and just waited for Kurumi to speak. The girl was just looking at the not-so-dark skies, like admiring the scenery above her.

"Say, Shidou, did I ever mention to you what my goal is?" Kurumi asked while staring above the skies.

Shidou tried to recall if she ever mentioned anything like that. As far as he could remember, she did mention that she had a goal, which she wanted to devour him because of his power, but she didn't say any details about it.

"Well, I only remember you saying that you have one, but you never mentioned anything about it." Shidou said.

Kurumi smiled.

"Well, then, Shidou-san, please listen carefully to what I'm going to say."

Shidou gulped. Seems like that he's about to discover something big.

"My goal is, to travel back 30 years in time to kill the first spirit who appeared in the world, the very same spirit that brought about every spirit that has followed."

Shidou's sweat dropped. He couldn't believe what he just heard. Kurumi travelling back to the past? That's something he thought to be absurd, but judging that her angel's power is related to time, that thought was overruled.

"For what reason…?" Shidou asked.

Kurumi didn't answer that one. It seems like she's having doubts about telling Shidou the reason, as she knew that he would definitely interfere with her plans.

"I… I'll tell you some other time, Shidou-san. Now's not a good time." She replied as she looked away from the blue-haired boy.

"O-Okay." Shidou said nervously. "Anyway, how are you going to do that?"

"Zaphkiel's twelfth bullet, Yud Bet, has the ability to allow me or someone to travel back in the past." Kurumi said. "But of course, it doesn't come for free. It consumes a great amount of time that I have in stock."

"I see…" Shidou quietly said. He gave a simple thinking about Kurumi what just said, and realized what she was implying. "Then, the 'you' in the future used that power to send Shiori in here?"

"Yes, and that's why it bothers me too much." Kurumi said.

Shidou didn't quite get why. "Why so?"

"Sending someone to the past with Yud Bet requires a lot of time in my part, and so keeping them in that time as well." Kurumi explained. "Like I said, it doesn't come for free. You don't get to stay there for too long."

"So, when you run out of time for that ability, that person will be sent back to the present?" Shidou asked.

Kurumi nodded. Shidou tried to give more thoughts about Kurumi's explanation. He couldn't seem to get the Easter egg in her story, and Kurumi realized this as well.

"Can I ask something, Shidou-san?" Kurumi said. Shidou gave his consent to her by nodding. "When did Shiori appear before you…?"

Shidou dived in his memories to recall the answer. As far as he remembers, Shiori transferred to Raizen two days before their summer vacation starts, but she said that she arrived at Tenguu City three days prior to that day, so she's already in this timeline for two weeks.

"She transferred to Raizen two days before summer vacation starts, which is last two Thursdays, but she arrived at Tenguu City three days prior to that, which is Monday."

Kurumi was surprised with Shidou's answer. She didn't expect that Shiori was already in this timeline for too long.

"She's already staying in this world for that long?!" Kurumi said like she couldn't believe what she just said.

Shidou raised an eyebrow. "What's the matter?"

"Are you even listening to what I said earlier, Shidou-san? That sending someone to the past and letting them stay there doesn't come for free?"

It was the time when Shidou realized what Kurumi was saying, and the main topic of what they're discussing. Shiori is already in this timeline for two weeks, so that means, the 'Kurumi' who sent her here must be continuously expending her time to keep her in here. Which is why Kurumi couldn't believe it.

"Then, does that mean, the 'you' in the future is continuously using her own time to keep Shiori here?" Shidou asked.

Kurumi nodded. "Exactly, but that's not the main issue here, Shidou-san. For two weeks and continuously using Yud Bet, even if I swallow all the people in Japan, no, in the whole continent, is not enough to sustain that time."

Even for Shidou, he knew what Kurumi was saying. But what bothered him was where the 'Kurumi' from the future got the time to keep Shiori in this timeline, not to mention for two weeks and counting.

"Couldn't the 'you' from the future sent her here permanently?" Shidou speculated.

Kurumi looked away. That thought didn't cross her mind, because all she knew was Yud Bet only sends someone to the past temporarily.

"Well, I can't say that it's impossible. It's just… even I myself don't know how to-" Kurumi's eyes widened as if she saw something unexpected and in an instant, she disappeared.

"Kurumi?!" Shidou called out, but Kurumi didn't show up.

He didn't know why Kurumi suddenly ditched him out like that until he heard a voice coming from behind him.

"Shidou?"

Shidou turned around and saw a girl with long, blue hair, wearing a casual yellow one piece dress. She was wearing a hat, supposedly to protect herself from the sun, but it's yet to rise up.

"Shiori? What are you doing here?" Shidou asked.

Shiori walked closer. "Well, I was just taking a morning walk; I didn't expect to bump on you here though." She said and sat down beside Shidou. "More importantly, was someone in here? It seems like you were talking to someone earlier."

Shidou was about to say yes when he suddenly felt nervous about it. Yes, there's nothing wrong about him revealing that he was with someone but for some reason, he didn't feel comfortable with it.

"A-Ah, no, I was alone." Shidou said.

Shiori looked at him suspiciously, which unnerved Shidou a little.

"Alright, then." Shiori said. "What are you doing here anyway? It's still early in the morning."

"I just happen to wake up early, and I didn't want to go back to sleep, so I decided to get some fresh air."

It was the truth. Except for the last part though, probably.

"Is that so? What a coincidence then, I happen to do the same." Shiori said and smiled at Shidou.

Shidou laughed out nervously. He just dodged one bullet. He had a feeling that he should keep his current relationship, not in a romantic way, with Kurumi for now.

**~o~O~o~**

It was already around seven in the morning when they got back to the hotel. Tohka and the others didn't seem to be awake yet, so Shidou and Shiori decided to stay in the hotel's cafeteria for breakfast. They didn't talk that much; mostly only about what to do later when Tohka and the others are ready to go.

And judging those girls, they would probably get up around nine or ten. Shidou and Shiori both know it.

"Say, Shiori…" Shidou called in a low voice.

"What's up, Shidou?"

Shidou bit his lip for a moment, hesitating to ask the question he had in mind. Shiori noticed it and decided to encourage him.

"You can ask me anything, I won't get mad, I promise." Shiori said, almost like she knew what Shidou was about to ask.

Shidou sighed in relief.

"Say, hypothetically, if you learned that you're not from this world… what would you do…?"

Shiori remained silent and just stared at Shidou.

"A-Ah, it's just a hypothesis… so-"

"See, that was easy, right?" Shiori then gave him a smile.

Shidou didn't get what she meant. No, he probably did, but he just mistook it for something else.

"Of course, that thought crossed my mind already. If I had to piece everything that happened in the past days, that's the only conclusion I could get."

Shidou's eyes widened in surprise.

"But of course, me coming from another world is not the problem." Shiori said. "You probably know what I'm trying to say, right?"

Shidou nodded. "It's how you got in to this world, right?"

"Exactly, and that's why I need my memories back to know what happened in my world." Shiori said and smiled. "So I'll be counting on you, Shidou!"

Seeing Shiori brightened up, all of Shidou's worry got flushed away like a river. In fact, he was worrying over nothing. But now, he wouldn't hesitate, and will do everything just to bring her memories back.

"Of course, you can count on me."

**~o~O~o~**

On the rooftop of the hotel where Shidou and the others were staying, there's a girl, wearing a black, one piece dress, with her tied in two locks down straight, staring at the rising sun from where she's standing. Clichéd it might be, she actually likes this kind of view, especially if she's with a certain someone. But that's not going to happen right now.

She sighed.

"…You know, you're letting half of your happiness out if you sigh that long." A voice suddenly spoke from behind her.

The girl turned around and saw a woman with silverish-purple hair who seemed to be in her late thirties, wearing some sort of uniform in which she didn't identify, standing few meters behind her.

"Ara, if I may ask, who might you be?"

"…Murasame Reine. I'm a friend of Shin... or should I say, Shidou." The older woman introduced. "…No need to introduce yourself, I already know who you are, Tokisaki Kurumi."

Yes, the girl is Tokisaki Kurumi. Codenamed by the AST and Ratatoskr as Nightmare, deemed to be the cruelest spirit of all times.

"Okay then." Kurumi said. "So, what do you want from me?"

Reine opened her PDA before talking again. "…I overheard your conversation with Shin earlier, and I want you to look at this." She then handed her PDA to Kurumi.

Kurumi accepted the PDA and took a look on what's inside. It shows an image of Shiori and various types of graphs, in which she didn't really get what it was.

"I don't get a single thing about this." Kurumi said as she gave the PDA back to Reine.

"…Figures." Reine said as she took the PDA back. "…In a nutshell, the information you saw in this device was everything to know about Shiori."

Kurumi remained silent.

"…It has many things to mention, but if I were to point out the most important thing, it would be that Shiori didn't have any traces of Reiryoku in her, or so I should assume."

Kurumi's eyes widened, unbelievably surprised.

"Then, does that mean, she's not really from another world, but in here?" Kurumi asked.

Reine swung her head. "…I won't jump to any conclusions. There are other possibilities."

"Did you tell Shidou-san about this?"

Reine swung her head once more.

"Mysteries are popping one after another, huh…?" Kurumi said to herself. "Will you continue to investigate this matter?"

Reine smiled at the spirit girl. "…Of course. I plan to unveil this mystery, for Shidou and Shiori's sake."

"I appreciate it."

**~o~O~o~**

It was already around 10:00AM when Shidou and the others got out for their sightseeing. They're seeing a lot of people on streets carrying stuff like decorations and lightings. Some of them were hanging lanterns on the sidewalk.

"The people here sure are busy…" Tohka said as she observed the people around them. "I wonder what's going on."

"Ah, that? There's a festival tonight, that's why." Shidou said.

Tohka's eyes sparkled. Oh no, not just Tohka. Kaguya and the others except for Shiori and Yoshino did as well. Shidou knew what they wanted from him.

Though they came unprepared for that event, there's always some hacks to get over with it.

"Okay, okay, we can go tonight." Shidou said.

"Yay!"

Shidou just sighed at them. Not like he's opposed to that idea though. In fact, he kinda saw that coming. They still have a lot of time before the festival starts, but it's not enough for the plans that he came up yesterday. The island is huge, and if they move in a single party, there won't be enough time to visit all the places that he planned to visit. Add that the girls might have a place that they wanted to go to that could not be in his list.

"So guys… I've made plans for us today, but if there's somewhere you-"

He didn't manage to end his sentence.

"They already left, Shidou." Tohka said. There's just three of them on the spot; Him, Tohka, and Shiori.

Well he somehow expected it.

"I could understand Kaguya and Yuzuru, but Miku and Yoshino?" Shiori asked.

Tohka scratched her cheek. "A-Ah, that… Kaguya dragged her away… for some reason."

"I-I see…" Shiori chuckled nervously, as if she knew what Tohka was talking about. Actually, she indeed knew about it.

"Yoshino seemed to be pretty close with Miku. She followed her on her own will." Tohka said.

Shidou wondered how, or when did that happen, but he couldn't guess. Not like he's opposed to the thought though. In fact, he's happy for Yoshino.

"Alright then, it's a waste of time to stay here. Any places you want to visit?" Shidou asked.

Shiori shrugged. "I'm unfamiliar with this place, so I'll let you lead the way." She then chuckled a little.

"Aye! I saw an amusement park earlier! Let's go there!" Tohka said as she dragged Shiori with her.

"A-Ah, wai-" Shiori didn't manage to end her protests as Tohka dragged her.

Shidou just sighed and then smiled at the two girls running away. He didn't bother chasing them as he knew where the place Tohka mentioned earlier.

**~o~O~o~**

"Shidou! You're slow!" Tohka pouted as Shidou appeared in front of the Amusement park's entrance. Shiori's still trying to catch her breathing; well, who wouldn't get tired after getting dragged by a supernatural strength.

"You're just too fast. Look at Shiori, she couldn't even breathe properly."

Shiori raised her hand and smiled awkwardly at the two. "I… I'm f-fine…"

"Your face says the otherwise." Shidou remarked.

Tohka coughed to get their attention. "Anyways, let's go inside!"

This time, she didn't just drag Shiori; Shidou was included. Good thing that Tohka didn't need to run as the entrance's just right before them.

"Woah, this place is packed." Shidou said as he entered the area.

Yep, the place is crowded. But not at the point that the rides had very long lines. Most people were just wandering around, taking pictures or something like that.

"Shidou, Shidou! Let's ride that!" Tohka said as she kept on pointing to a certain ride.

Shidou turned to whatever Tohka was pointing to and learned that it was the roller coaster. Shiori's face turned blue after seeing the ride as she was awkwardly smiling at the ride.

"Roller coaster right off the bat?" Shidou asked. Well, this is Tohka we're talking about. Her crazy antics are unstoppable. "What about you Shi-"

Shidou didn't even complete his sentence as the answer he was looking for was written all over Shiori's face. He couldn't describe it with longer words other than "She's screwed".

"O-Oi, Tohka-"

"Hey, what are you two waiting for? Let's go, or the line will get longer!" Tohka said as she grabbed Shidou and Shiori by their hands and dragged them with her towards the said ride before they could protest for their safety.

**~o~O~o~**

After around fifteen minutes of waiting on line, the three high schoolers got in the coaster. Shidou and Shiori was sitting together while Tohka was in front of them. Shidou turned to Shiori, and noticed that her blue face was already purple, ready to faint at any moment.

"T-Tohka, this looks like a bad idea…" Shidou whispered to the girl in front of her.

"What, Shidou? You're scared or something?" Tohka said with a poker face.

"Please don't say that with that kind of face."

Shiori didn't say anything. She was mumbling stuff that seemed to be incomprehensible for humans.

After a few moments, the operator signalled them that they will start in a short while. Hearing this, Shiori froze like a statue, with her hands clasped tightly on the armrest of the seat. It's obvious that she's nervous, in a level off the charts.

"T-Tohka, Shiori doesn't look too well…" Shidou warned.

Tohka turned to Shiori and saw what Shidou described Shiori as. "E-Eh… you should've told me earlier! We can't get off now."

"You of all people should know that you dragged us he-"

Shidou was interrupted as the ride started. The people around them cheered, ready to have a blast with this intensively massive attraction. As for Shiori, well, let's just say she's not doing well.

And in a few moments…

"WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

Everyone who were riding with them screamed like there's no tomorrow as the coaster ran down in a ridiculous speed. Shidou grabbed on the armrest tighter as he felt the intense sensation of the shaking, the wind hitting his face, and the insane speed of the coaster. In all honesty, he's not fond of these rides, but that doesn't mean he hates it. It's just, he never got the chance, nor bothered to ride one, until Tohka dragged him.

As the ride continued, he felt something grab onto his hand. He turned his attention to it and saw Shiori gripping on him tightly, with her eyes closed.

'Shiori?' Shidou wondered as he stared at the blue-haired girl beside him. In his perspective, Shiori would pass out at any moment.

But there's nothing that could help her aside from the ride finishing its course.

**~o~O~o~**

"Woooh, that was a blast!" Tohka said as she stepped out of the coaster.

Shidou got out of the ride while assisting Shiori. She looked like a withered vegetable, and her soul's almost leaving out of her body.

"I'mneverridingthisthingagain… I'mneverridingthisthingagain… I'mneverridingthisthingagain…"

Shidou could hear Shiori's silent mumbling and just sighed in disbelief. He felt bad for Shiori, really. Anyone would, except for Tohka, probably.

Not only that, Shiori looks like she's about throw up.

"Ugh…" At the same moment, Shiori passed out.

"Shiori seems to be out of the game already." Shidou said as he led Shiori to a bench and lied her down slowly.

"What should we do? We can't leave Shiori here all alone." Shidou said.

Tohka crossed her arms. "Hmmm, if only Kaguya and the others were here-"

She interrupted herself as she saw a group of four girls wandering around. And not just random girls, Tohka knew them well.

"Kaguya! Yuzuru! Yoshino! Miku!" Tohka called as she waved her arms upward, which got the group's attention.

'That was surprisingly convenient.' Shidou thought and sighed awkwardly in relief.

The four girls approached them and greeted them.

"Woah, Shidou, Tohka, and Shiori!" Kaguya said as she saw them. "I was wondering where you guys disappeared earlier."

Shidou almost popped a nerve from her comment. "You were the ones who left us behind, if I may correct you."

Kaguya stuck her tongue out. Obviously, she's messing with him.

"Ask. What happened to Shiori?" Yuzuru asked as she stared at the soulless girl on the bench.

"A-Ah, we just got out of the roller coaster." Shidou pointed at the ride they just cleared. "You know what that means."

In a brief moment, Kaguya and Yuzuru's eyes sparkled, and Shidou noticed it. He's got a bad feeling about it, since these two have the same crazy tendencies like Tohka.

Either way, he didn't stop them. He doesn't have a right to do so since it's their fun, not his.

"Want to give it a go?" Kaguya asked the group.

"I'm up for another round!" Tohka said.

"Accept. Bring it on." Yuzuru said.

Yoshino and Miku looked opposed to the thought, but they didn't decline. They did come here in the amusement park for these attractions, and it would be a waste not to enjoy them.

"You guys have fun around here. I'll keep an eye out on Shiori." Shidou said as he sat down on the space on the bench that Shiori didn't occupy. She's still out cold, by the way.

"Geh, she looks like crap. Is she bad at these rides?" Kaguya asked.

"Seems like it. Even I wouldn't recommend something like this right away."

Tohka chuckled nervously after Shidou's comment.

**~o~O~o~**

_Flames._

_Fires everywhere._

_I'm back at this scenery. Yes, this is not the first time that I've seen something like this. It may be a little vivid, but I remember this event._

_This is a dream. A dream that I've seen before, but in a different location._

_The cause of the fire? I don't remember. That information slipped out of my mind long ago._

_But maybe, I can recover it right here._

_I look around, and found out that nobody aside I is here. Figured that much. I won't be able to know what I want to know that easily._

_I stood up and walked around. The flames are eating away the things they touch until they are reduced to ashes. No soul could be found around aside my own._

_This place is devoid of life._

_I looked up to the skies; the stars could not be seen even though it's already night time. Instead, the only things I see are falling stars._

_Falling stars, yes. But now I took a closer look to it, they're no ordinary falling stars. In fact, they are NOT falling stars._

_Burning planes, meteors, etc._

_Countless burning objects are falling from the sky, but it never hit me._

_I tried to run away, but I suddenly feel like my body is not cooperating with me completely. My pace remained the same. And that's when I realized that I have no control over my body. The only thing I could do is watch the scene playing in front of me. This is like, reminiscing the memories._

_But, could I really call this a memory? What if, this event is just an illusion played by my own doubts and uncertainties?_

_Several questions popped one after another inside my mind, and I couldn't think of anything. Add that I even can't move my arms to grip my head nor cover my vision, it's a complete torture._

_Before I knew it, I found myself in a familiar place. The place where my previous dream has started. This is a complete replay of the dream._

_And I knew that, there is someone behind me right now._

_My body turned around, and indeed, there is someone. She wears the same outfit, and doing the same action as before. She's pointing her gun towards me._

_I know what will happen. I completely know it._

_Her lips started to move. Of course, I expected that the same thing will happen as well. I can't possibly hope for a better outcome._

_But, the next event completely blew my entire expectations._

"_**Don't worry…"**_

_I could hear her voice as she speaks. This is something new._

_I wanted to say something, but I couldn't._

"_**No matter what happens… No matter what you will do… I will always be on your side…"**_

_What?_

_On my side? I could understand it if she said 'by your side', but I'm sure I didn't hear it wrong._

_I really want to say something, damnit! I have too many questions to ask her, but nothing here is in favour of me._

"_**I will always, always choose to be your ally…"**_

…

"_**Like how you chose me… over the world."**_

* * *

**Alright guys! Chapter 7 is done! Whew. I can't find much time to write. I have tons of games to play as I mentioned above xD**

**And now, Megadimension Neptunia VII got released on Steam! YAY! I just finished everything in Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth 2, on my way to Re;Birth 3, so it's going to a lot of my time xD my gamer blood is boiling.**

**I don't know how long chapter 8 would take. I seriously have no more attachments to Date A Live, and it's killing me D:**

**Anyways, please drop your reviews/comments/suggestions/violent reactions! It encourages me to write more x3**

**Until next time, see ya guys~ Thanks for your continuous support to my story!**


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